Our commitment to sustainability

"UKTV is proud of its track record on sustainability and our ability to ‘punch above our weight’ in terms of innovation and engagement on climate issues. As early supporters of Albert we have been in this from the beginning and as part of BBC Studios we look forward to continuing our own unique contribution as a commercial broadcaster towards saving our planet."

Richard Watsham, Chief Creative Officer Global Director of Acquisitions BBCS/UKTV Commissioning

At UKTV we recognise that a large part of our role in helping society transition to net zero is to communicate with our audiences about the climate crisis and normalise sustainable behaviours within our content. We also understand that the preservation of nature and biodiversity is critical and are working to better understand how we can weave this into our production & editorial processes.

UKTV is a signatory of the pan-broadcaster Climate Content Pledge which is a commitment to reach more of our audiences on this topic and offer a fair and balanced vision of a sustainable future and be informed by science. 

UKTV is the first broadcaster to include Planet Placement within Silvermouse allowing us to measure our 2024/2025 target for 75% of our Commissions to include Planet Placement via dialogue or commentary and 75% via backgrounds, actions & props.

However, it’s not enough for a broadcaster to educate audiences on net zero, we have to be walking the walk ourselves. In Financial year 2022/2023 84% of the UKTV Carbon footprint came from our suppliers and we recognise that we need to bring our production partners with us to achieve our Net Zero targets.

Contractual obligations when working for UKTV

As part of BBCS, UKTV supports the delivery of the BBC Group's Net Zero Strategy underpinned by science.

It is a mandatory requirement for ALL of our Commissions to be certified as sustainable via the Albert Toolkit.

As part of your Albert certification we will work with you to embed Climate Content within your editorial from the earliest stages of development.

Albert certified production & de-carbonisation

“The scale of the challenge can feel overwhelming and when that happens, I am reminded of Greta Thunberg’s advice that ‘no one is too small to make a difference’. The steps we take now to switch to sustainable production techniques are critical to reach our net zero targets, but they also enable us to talk to our audiences with confidence about the climate crisis, sustainable behaviours and the protection of nature & biodiversity”.

Rachel Lyon, Production Executive & Sustainability lead for UKTV Originals

It is mandatory for all UKTV Commissions to be certified by Albert and you need to start this process in the pre-production phase and well before filming commences.

Detailed information relevant to delivering Albert certified content to UKTV can be found in our Producer Pack.

Albert certification exemptions:

• Acquisitions. However we would like any and all information on the sustainable credentials of your finished programme or archive if they exist.
• Programmes made entirely from archive footage and reversions involving post production only, with no specially shot material.
• International production companies are encouraged to use Albert or an equivalent local scheme if available in their territory.
• Fast turnaround and live programmes: can be certified, but we advise productions to get in touch with Albert as soon as possible to discuss. If the speed of production means any of the criteria prove difficult to meet, then they will be considered as part of Albert’s best efforts approach.
• Short Form Content - Aggregated duration of the programme or entire series is 15 minutes or less and the budget for the entire project (all episodes) is £50,000 or less.

If your production does fall within the short form definition you do not need to complete a Footprint, CAP & Carbon Offset unless the short form has high reputational value (eg specifically about Sustainability, high value/cost, significant brand).

If your short form is connected to a long form programme, then data should be included in the main programme’s Footprint & Carbon Action Plan.

Short form content producers should refer to the Albert website for guidance on best practice.

De-Carbonising our Commissions

As part of BBC Group we are committed to reducing our Scope 3 emissions, which includes suppliers, by 28% by 2030. With the changes to the BAFTA albert mandate, we are no longer offsetting. Instead, we are working to reduce CO2 emissions as much as possible – known as deep decarbonisation. We are also prioritising improving the accuracy of data being entered into our carbon footprint reports. Our de-carbonisation efforts focus on four key impact areas; Energy, Travel, Materials and Waste.

We look forward to working with our production partners as we move into this new phase.

In 2024 we are collaborating with one of our independent production companies and the BBCS Sustainability team on a deep dive de-carbonisation initiative on one of our drama series. We will share our learnings in the Case Studies section later this year.

As a minimum we expect to discuss opportunities to de-carbonise your production with you during development, schedule/budget negotiations & during a pre-greenlight Sustainability meeting. Progress reports throughout production will enable us to keep in touch & understand the challenges and opportunities of making sustainable production choices.

Please have a look at the BBC Top Tips for reducing carbon emissions on production.

Sustainability in editorial

“Planet Placement – referencing climate content in our shows – is integral to what we do in Commissioning. I had an (energy-saving) lightbulb moment when I went on my Albert training, I realised that as programme makers we have a unique opportunity to talk to our audiences about the issues, making it part of the conversation. It's a hugely complicated subject and can feel overwhelming, and frankly, scary. But if we get it right with Planet Placement, we will make viewers feel engaged and motivated to act, while also feeling hopeful.”

Helen Nightingale, Head of Factual and Factual Entertainment, Commissioning

A poll by GfK, commissioned by BBC Audiences in 2023 suggests that the environment continues to be an important topic to the UK public with 57% of people claiming it is very important to them.

As programme makers it is important that we reflect the concerns of our audiences, avoid portraying unsustainable lifestyles as aspirational and portray fair and balanced visions of a sustainable society.

In 2023, 6 UK Broadcasters including UKTV collaborated with Ipsos Mori to fund research into Climate Content. The research reveals key insights into the role broadcasters can play in inspiring audiences to make changes to tackle the climate crisis and biodiversity loss. Albert have created a useful pocket guide to share the key findings and you can also read the full report from Ipsos Mori Pan UK Broadcaster research.

Opportunities to embed climate content within your editorial will be discussed at the earliest stages of development, at a pre-greenlight meeting and in the pre-production editorial meeting. We will keep in touch with your progress via progress reports and you are required to detail all final Climate Content references in Silvermouse.

Our 2024/2025 target is for 75% of Commissions to include Climate Content within commentary/dialogue and 75% of Commissions to include sustainable prompts through backgrounds/actions/props.

In collaboration with the BBC, we are reviewing how we can best track our Climate Content to focus on important sustainability topics and understand our reach. To understand our audience impact we are working with our Research & Insight team to include Sustainability questions in all of our dial tests.

The BBC Environmental Sustainability Guide is a helpful resource for Producers providing detailed information regarding the science behind the climate crisis.

Please note that it is a mandatory requirement for Albert certification that a senior member of the editorial team has attended editorial training which is available free from Albert.

Case studies

We know that it can often be easier to ‘show’ than ‘tell,’ so we are also working to provide case studies, examples and ‘top tips’ to help guide programme-makers working with us to de-carbonise their productions.

In 2024 we are collaborating with one of our independent production companies and our colleagues in the BBCS Sustainability team to de-carbonise one of our original drama series. We have a de-carbonisation budget in 2024 to support this pilot scheme.

Watch this space for more detail later in the year.

In the meantime, you can have a look at some Case Studies from the BBC.

Further resources

Help and support for producing sustainable content, on and off screen

BBC Climate creatives 2023 event: Watch recordings of the latest BBC event

Albert Planet Placement website: Case studies and guidance from Albert

Albert case studies: Tips & inspiration from other programme makers

Albert Biodiversity Guide: Understand your potential to promote biodiversity both on screen & off screen

BBCS Sustainability: BBCS is a world leader operating sustainably both on and off screen

BBC: Read more about the BBC Net Zero Strategy and their three pillars