On 23 June 2025, Climate Emergency UK published its national Council Climate Action Scoreboard. The London Borough of Bromley received a score of 39%, making it the third lowest-performing borough in the city. This marks a 13-percentage-point improvement from 2023, when Bromley ranked last in London. In 2025, the council improved in six out of seven categories but received a 15% penalty in the Transport category, reducing its score for that section by 3.15 points.
Assessment scores
Since 2023, Climate Emergency UK has used a scoreboard to assess how effectively councils are progressing towards net zero carbon emissions. CE UK analyses public, local, and national data using a criterion based on seven equally weighted categories — buildings & heating, transport, planning & land use, governance & finance, biodiversity, collaboration & engagement, and waste reduction & food — to provide each council’s score.
In 2023, Bromley was ranked as London’s lowest-performing borough, with a score of just 26% and below-average scores across all categories. By 2025, the average score in London is 41% and Bromley has improved to 39%, making it the third lowest score in the city.
A major shortcoming
A key reason in Bromley’s weak score was a 15% penalty in its transport assessment, applied due to the council’s contribution to high carbon emissions. These emissions stem in part from Bromley’s failure to reduce air pollution to the safe level recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO), as well as the council’s 2021 expansion of a major road to increase vehicle capacity.
In its 2022 Net Zero Action Plan, the council committed to achieving a net zero carbon council fleet — referring to vehicles directly managed by the council — by 2027. However, fewer than 10% of these vehicles have been converted to low-emission alternatives so far. Despite its stated ambitions, Bromley does not appear to be on track to meet its transport goals. Although the council’s overall score increased between 2023 and 2025, its transport rating fell by 4%, highlighting persistent weaknesses in this area. Given that transport is one of the highest-emitting sectors under local authority control, the decline suggests that current policies may be falling short of driving meaningful change.
The council’s commitments
In 2022, Councillor William Harmer, Chairman of the Environment Committee, stated that the council had been “developing successful and more demanding carbon management programmes for a number of years.” However, this optimism is difficult to reconcile with Bromley’s consistent underperformance in independent assessments. Such poor performances place Bromley at risk of falling even further behind in the race against climate change. Similarly, the disconnect between official statements and independent performance metrics raises concerns for Bromley residents about the council’s effectiveness.
In contrast, neighbouring councils like Lewisham and Southwark scored well above average, 66% and 68% respectively, and were ranked in the top ten performing boroughs across London. Both councils saw improvement from their 2023 ratings with Southwark crediting part of this success to employing 25 staff members to implement their climate change action plans. Bromley may benefit from applying a similar strategy.
Successful measures
Despite these challenges, Bromley has made some progress. The council’s overall score improved by 13% between 2023 and 2025. One key contributor to this improvement was the council’s commitment to switching all street lighting to energy-efficient LEDs by 2026 — a move expected to reduce emissions by up to 9%.
In addition, Bromley reported the highest recycling rate in London in 2024, achieving 49% which is just shy of the city’s 2030 target of 50%. Ranking third overall for household recycling and waste disposal, the borough has demonstrated that it can take effective climate action. This area of strength highlights the council’s potential to take further meaningful action against climate change.
What you can do
While Bromley still lags behind the rest of London, it is making clear progress towards a more sustainable future through its recycling and lighting efficiency efforts. Those interested in making the borough more environmentally friendly can apply for the Veolia’s Sustainability fund (a non-profit that grants £1000 funding to chosen projects), consult the council’s guide to sustainable home upgrades or begin composting and waste reduction at home.
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