Overview
Addressing climate change through the reduction of greenhouse gas ("GHG") emissions is now a key priority for most companies and Halfords is no exception. As one of the UK's largest employers it is critically important that we make a strong commitment to tackle climate change and put this at the top of our ESG agenda.
Progress in FY21
Last year, we set out our plan to be carbon neutral by 2050. Over the last 12 months, we have gone a step further, agreeing a set of science-based targets for emissions reduction, and have engaged with the Science Based Target Initiative ("SBTi"), working towards formal accreditation. A target is 'science-based' if it aligns with the goals of the Paris Agreement to keep global warming below 2oC and sets out a clearly-defined pathway for companies to reduce emissions.
Our targets are as follows:
- Halfords commits to achieve a 1.5ºC aligned science-based target across our own operations by 2030, reducing our greenhouse gas emissions by at least 42% in this decade (vs. FY20 baseline).
- We will also engage with 67% of our suppliers by emissions, covering purchased goods and services and capital goods, with the aim of them having science-based targets by the start of 2026.
- Achieve Net Zero value chain emissions by 2050.
The engagement with our supply chain will see us work with our priority suppliers to help them decarbonise their own operations. In support of this, we will encourage suppliers to measure and report their GHG emissions and have their own reduction plan in place, preferably setting science-aligned and Net Zero targets.
We continued to implement solutions to reduce our emissions, such as a further roll-out of LED lighting and Building Management Solutions ("BMS") in our retail stores, an assessment of our company car fleet to incorporate lower carbon vehicles, and an assessment of renewable energy options, after which we agreed a deal with a renewable energy company which will come into effect during FY22. We will continue to invest in initiatives to reduce our carbon footprint further, whether that's through improving efficiency e.g. LED lighting or heat pump technology, or through switching to greener forms of energy e.g. biomass options for vehicles.
We want to lead by example in electric mobility and so, as the operator of over 300 Mobile Expert and Commercial vans, we will continue to explore the options for making the switch to electric vans as soon as we can. The key challenges are weight and range, and as it stands today, we don't yet believe the technology exists for the journeys our vans make. We will continue to work with manufacturers and collaborate with other fleet operators to switch to electric once it is feasible to do so.
Scope 1 and 2 emissions data
| 2020 tCO2e | 2021 tCO2e |
| Halfords Retail directly purchased electricity | 10,576 | 7,967 |
| Autocentres directly purchased electricity | 2,897 | 2,159 |
| Total Electricity consumption | 13,473 | 10,126 |
| Halfords Retail combustion of gas | 7,438 | 6,470 |
| Autocentres combustion of gas | 4,311 | 3,637 |
| Total Gas consumption | 11,749 | 10,107 |
| Vehicles on Company business | 2,5471 | 2,988 |
| Overall totals | 27,090 | 23,221 |
Company's chosen intensity measurement:
tCO2e per £1m Group revenue | 23.45 | 17.97 |
SECR Report – 2020/2021
| Scope | | 2021 (tCO2e) | % of total |
| 1 | Gas | 10,107 | 43.52% |
| 2 | Electricity | 10,126 | 43.61% |
| 1 | Transport | 2,988 | 12.87% |
| Total | 23,221 | 100% |
Scope Breakdown (tCO2e)
| Scope 1 | 13,095 |
| Scope 2 | 10,126 |
Electricity
| Brand | Total kWh | tCO2e |
| Halfords Retail | 34,173,135 | 7,967 |
| Halfords Autocentres | 9,261,221 | 2,159 |
| Grand total | 43,434,355 | 10,126 |
Gas
| Brand | Total kWh | tCO2e |
| Halfords Retail | 35,185,311 | 6,470 |
| Halfords Autocentres | 19,780,143 | 3,637 |
| Grand total | 54,965,455 | 10,107 |
Transport
| Brand | Miles | tCO2e |
| Halfords Retail | 1,311,954 | 362 |
| Halfords Autocentres | 1,668,482 | 460 |
| Mobile vans | 7,990,000 | 2,166 |
| Grand total | 10,970,436 | 2,988 |
- Restating 2020 to include all Group vehicles, including mobile vans.
The overall reduction in Scope 1 and 2 emissions is partly driven by store closures related to COVID-19, but also our own efficiencies within our emissions-reduction programme, e.g. the roll-out of LED lighting and BMS within our Retail estate.
Scope 3 emissions
Our Scope 3 emissions data is based on an Input/Output model and is therefore an estimate, calculated by applying supplier spend data to industry-accepted carbon benchmarks for each supplier. We will start working with our suppliers and vendors to gather accurate Scope 3 data, building a robust baseline from which to set targets and measure our progress. As is common with most retailers and distributors in the UK, the majority of our overall emissions are Scope 3, reflecting the impact of manufacturing products in a global supply chain. It is therefore imperative that we engage with our suppliers to reduce their own emissions, thus putting us on pathway to achieving Net Zero by 2050.
Over the past 12 months, we have continued our investment in energy-saving measures across our estate, particularly the roll out of LED lights and Building Management Systems ("BMS") in our retail stores. BMS provides automation of controls in stores for heating, lighting and small power sources, ultimately helping us control energy usage.
By the end of FY21, we had BMS and LED lights installed in 224 sites accounting for well over 50% of our retail estate. This roll-out significantly improves our energy efficiency, reducing our Scope 2 emissions, and will form a core part of our plans to meet our science-based targets.
We will invest further in FY22, rolling out to an additional 124 retail sites. Looking further ahead, we will continue to search for innovative opportunities to reduce the energy requirements of our stores, garages, distribution centres and hubs.