An increasing number of universities and colleges are using a digital self-assessment tool to drive sustainability efforts across their estates.

The publication of the Sustainability Leadership Scorecard (SLS) annual impact report for 2025 by The Association of University Directors of Estates (AUDE) shows a 42% uplift in use of the tool since activity was last measured in 2023.

More and more universities are understanding the SLS to be the key tool in monitoring the gains to sustainability in their institution.

In 2025 128 universities and colleges are using the tool, which was specifically developed for higher and further education settings.

Now in its seventh year, it can help to build a definitive picture of an institution’s sustainability performance; benchmark and track progress; and support collaboration across institutions and beyond.

Users self score against 18 key sustainability areas and this year this resulted in 58 institutions achieving a ranking of bronze, silver, gold, or platinum.

As the newly-published annual impact report shows, institutions are closest to achieving their target scores in the areas of health and wellbeing, leadership, and risk; and are furthest from achieving their target scores in the areas of climate change adaptation, learning and teaching, and water.

AUDE executive director, Jane Harrison-White, said: “We consistently see high scores in the category of leadership and that is credit in some measure to the way in which boards and councils grapple with these tough issues, often steered by expertise from AUDE members.

“The quality of the leadership and governance around these issues is a vital enabler of strong sustainability performance at an institutional level; and within the tool this theme encompasses staff engagement, the level and success of which again act as key indicators of success.

The SLS generates the information you will need to keep your university aligned behind a clear plan based on strengths, weaknesses, and priorities

“At the same time we see consistent areas of concern to users, such as in the ‘water’ category, where a wide variety of concerns from supply to management of waste water to flood mitigation may play into lower scores.

“The key is that while you can benchmark against others, your scores and your tracking across a number of years to demonstrate progress, is entirely within your control.

“The patterns that emerge over use are therefore as rigorous as you make them.

“The SLS generates the information you will need to keep your university aligned behind a clear plan based on strengths, weaknesses, and priorities.”

In the last 12 months AUDE has released a number of guidance documents and tools to further support universities and colleges, including the Guide to Decarbonisation and the Legacy Buildings Guide.

Before the end of this summer it we will follow these with a new Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience Guide.