CALCULATION METHODOLOGY GHG emissions are calculated in accordance with the UK Government’s Environmental Reporting Guidelines: including streamlined energy and carbon reporting March 2019 and the GHG Protocol’s A Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard including recent updates on Scope 2 reporting. The UK Government emission conversion factors for greenhouse gas company reporting (2024 data set) have been used to convert data from sources including utilities meters, business travel mileage, and water consumption into CO2e. Location-based Scope 2 emissions are calculated using the UK national average grid emissions factor. Market-based Scope 2 emissions are calculated on an emissions factor of zero for all electricity purchased under our Unite Group supply contract which is 100% certified renewable with 44MW also purchased via a corporate PPA. Further details of which reporting are in our standalone Sustainability Report. REPORTING BOUNDARIES We report 100% of energy use and GHG emissions for properties under our operational control, including properties owned by Unite Group plc and subsidiaries, and by JVs regardless of equity share. All assets are in the UK and constitute 100% of our global energy use and GHG emissions. Data has not been normalised or adjusted for any factors such as occupancy or weather. Student residents pay a single all-inclusive bill, and are not charged for any energy, heat or hot water they consume; hence all energy used in our buildings contributes directly towards Scope 1 & 2 GHG emissions, rather than falling into Scope 3 emissions. Consequently, our most significant source of Scope 3 emissions is embodied carbon in new developments. INDEPENDENT VERIFICATION Energy consumption and Scope 1 & 2 greenhouse gas emissions have been externally verified by SGS to a reasonable level in line with ISO 14064-3:2019. Environmental KPIs, have been verified to a limited level of assurance in line with ISAE 3000 (Revised). SGS’s opinion statements can be viewed on our website. Due to data availability, a portion of Scope 3 emissions have been verified to a limited level assurance. THE UNITE GROUP PLC Annual Report and Accounts 2024 51 Case study Our approach to thought leadership Students’ needs are always evolving. To understand those changes over time, we launched the Unite Students Applicant Index in 2022. The only annual research to track university applicants’ attitudes and confidence levels year-on-year, the Index tells us how each year’s new students feel before they arrive at university. This helps us to provide them with a Great Place to Live, and gives our 60+ university partners and the wider UK Higher Education sector valuable insights about their students. This year, we found that more applicants were motivated by moving away from home than five years ago, as well as major differences in confidence between socioeconomic groups. In December, we partnered with the Unite Foundation to commission a report from the Social Market Foundation. Care and Learning in Higher Education looked at the barriers estranged and care-experienced young people face in going to university, and how they can be supported.