Verified carbon reporting

Carbon verification services for UK SMEs

Q: What is carbon verification?

Carbon verification is the process of checking that a business's reported greenhouse gas emissions are complete, calculated with a recognised method, and traceable to primary data. In practice it sits on a ladder. At the bottom is a self-declared figure with no supporting detail. In the middle is a footprint built on official conversion factors and a documented methodology, with an auditable trail back to the source data. At the top is independent assurance from an accredited body working to a standard such as ISO 14064-3. CarbonVerified produces the middle tier, which is the level of proof that PPN 006 and most supplier questionnaires ask for.

Q: Is CarbonVerified an accredited third-party verification body?

No. CarbonVerified is an independent commercial platform, not a UKAS-accredited verification body, and it does not provide assurance to ISO 14064-3 or ISAE 3000. What it provides is a verified carbon statement: your Scope 1, 2 and 3 footprint calculated on official DESNZ factors following the GHG Protocol, a written methodology statement, a verification timestamp, a public audit URL and a Certificate of Verification. If a specific contract explicitly requires accredited independent assurance, you would engage an accredited verifier, and the statement CarbonVerified produces is the document they would assess.

Q: Does a PPN 006 tender require independent third-party verification?

No. PPN 006 requires a published Carbon Reduction Plan that reports Scope 1, 2 and a defined subset of Scope 3 emissions using DESNZ conversion factors, commits to net zero by 2050, and carries a director's signature. It does not require accredited third-party assurance. "Verified" in this context means the figures are calculated with the government method and can be traced back to your bills and records, which is exactly what CarbonVerified's output demonstrates.

Q: What does the Certificate of Verification show?

It records that your carbon statement was produced on the official DESNZ factors for the reporting year, following the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard, on a stated date. It carries a unique reference and links to a public audit URL where a procurement team can see the same figures and the methodology behind them. It is a first-party record of how the number was produced, not an accredited third-party assurance opinion.

Q: How long does carbon verification take?

Once you have your energy bills, mileage or travel records and headcount to hand, you can complete data entry, generate a verified carbon statement and Carbon Reduction Plan, and download the Certificate of Verification in a single session. Most SMEs finish in an afternoon, against the three to four weeks a consultant engagement typically runs to.

Q: How much do carbon verification services cost?

The Single-Bid Pass is £99 as a one-off payment and gives you 30 days of full access for a single tender. CarbonVerified Pro is £190 per year and covers ongoing reporting and annual Carbon Reduction Plan updates. There is also a free starter tier and a free 60-second PPN 006 compliance check. A consultant-led verification exercise usually starts around £3,500.

Get a verified carbon footprint you can put in front of a procurement team. CarbonVerified calculates your Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions on official DESNZ factors, documents the method, and gives you a Certificate of Verification and a public audit URL to reference in your bid.

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What carbon verification actually means

Verification is about how much weight your emissions figure can carry. A number with nothing behind it convinces no one. The same number becomes useful the moment someone can see the method, the conversion factors, and the trail back to your bills.

There are three broad levels, and knowing which one a contract needs saves you a lot of money.

Self-declared

A figure stated in a bid with no supporting calculation. Fast to write, easy for an evaluator to discount, and a common cause of low scores on environmental questions.

Documented and auditable

What CarbonVerified provides

A footprint built on official DESNZ factors and the GHG Protocol, with a written methodology statement, a verification timestamp, a Certificate of Verification, and a public audit URL a buyer can open. This is the level PPN 006 and the environmental sections of most supplier questionnaires are asking for.

Independent accredited assurance

A separate accredited body reviews your inventory against a standard such as ISO 14064-3 or ISAE 3000 and issues an assurance opinion. Some large or high-value contracts specify this. Where they do, the verified statement from CarbonVerified is the document the assurer works from.

What you get

Four outputs that together answer the carbon and net zero questions in a UK tender or procurement questionnaire.

Verified carbon footprint

Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions in tonnes CO2e, calculated on the official DESNZ conversion factors for the reporting year and structured to the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard.

Methodology statement

A written record of which factors were used, how each scope was bounded, and where the activity data came from, so an evaluator can follow the number back to its source.

Certificate of Verification

A dated certificate with a unique reference confirming the statement was produced on the correct factors and method. Attach it to your bid alongside your Carbon Reduction Plan.

Public audit URL

A live page showing your headline figure, year-on-year trend and methodology. Buyers verify the link during evaluation, which satisfies the PPN 006 requirement that the plan is published and publicly accessible.

When a business needs carbon verification

Bidding for public sector contracts. PPN 006 makes a published, DESNZ-based Carbon Reduction Plan a pass or fail condition on central government contracts above £5m a year, and many NHS bodies, councils and housing associations apply the same rule lower down.
Answering supplier qualification questionnaires. PAS 91, the Standard Selection Questionnaire, EcoVadis and NHS Evergreen all ask for a measured footprint and a net zero commitment. A verified statement lets you answer from data rather than estimates.
Making public environmental claims. The FCA anti-greenwashing rule and the CMA Green Claims Code expect any "net zero" or "carbon neutral" statement in your marketing to be backed by evidence. A documented footprint is that evidence.
Reporting into a larger customer\'s supply chain. FTSE 100 and 250 companies now report Scope 3, which means their suppliers get asked for their own numbers. A verified statement with an audit URL is quick to share and hard to argue with.

How the options compare

Match the level of verification to what the contract in front of you actually asks for.

Route	Typical cost	Typical time	Best for
CarbonVerified	£99 one-off or £190/yr	An afternoon	PPN 006 bids and supplier questionnaires that need a documented, auditable footprint
Carbon or ESG consultant	£3,500 and up	3 to 4 weeks	Complex operations, or when you want a person to own the analysis and write the narrative
Accredited verification body	£5,000 and up	4 to 8 weeks	Contracts that explicitly require independent assurance to ISO 14064-3 or ISAE 3000
DIY spreadsheet	Free	2 days, often repeated	Nothing with a deadline. Factor errors and scope gaps are the usual reason CRPs get rejected

How verification works

Enter your activity data

Energy bills, business mileage and travel, headcount, and, on Pro, water and waste. The tool prompts for exactly what each scope needs.

Factors applied automatically

CarbonVerified applies the correct DESNZ factor to each line. You never look up a conversion figure or pick a year.

Statement and CRP generated

You get a verified carbon statement, a Carbon Reduction Plan in the PPN 006 format, and a Certificate of Verification, all as downloadable PDFs.

Publish the audit URL

Your figures go live at a public URL you reference in the bid. Update your data each year and the URL stays current.

A note on scope

CarbonVerified is an independent platform, not a UKAS-accredited verification body, and it does not issue assurance opinions to ISO 14064-3 or ISAE 3000. It produces a documented, auditable verified carbon statement, which is what PPN 006 and the large majority of supplier questionnaires require. If a contract you are bidding for names accredited independent assurance as a requirement, use an accredited verifier and give them the CarbonVerified statement as their starting point.

Carbon verification: common questions

What is carbon verification?

Is CarbonVerified an accredited third-party verification body?

Does a PPN 006 tender require independent third-party verification?

What does the Certificate of Verification show?

How long does carbon verification take?

How much do carbon verification services cost?

Get a verified footprint this week

Calculate your Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions on official DESNZ factors and download a Certificate of Verification. Built for UK SMEs, no consultant required.

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