University sustainability rankings 2021
Unis are under increasing pressure to be kinder to the environment – but how many are actually taking action? These university rankings reveal the best and worst places for sustainability.

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The general UK university rankings can tell us a lot, but when it comes to some of the issues we really care about, like (a big one!) the planet, they can fall a bit short.
If you've been wondering how sustainable your university is, wonder no more. Here are the comprehensive results charting the environmental and ethical performance of unis in the UK.
How the university sustainability league is calculated

Credit: CBC
These rankings were compiled by People & Planet and included 154 unis across the UK.
You'll see in our run-down of the results below that each university's been given a total percentage score. This is worked out based on their performance in 13 categories:
- Environmental policy and strategy
- Sustainable staff
- Environmental auditing and management systems
- Ethical investment
- Carbon management
- Workers' rights
- Sustainable food
- Staff and student engagement
- Education for sustainable development
- Energy sources
- Waste and recycling
- Carbon reduction
- Water reduction.
Each university's scores across all categories are combined, with some categories carrying more weight than others. An overall total percentage is calculated, and the higher the total percentage, the higher the ranking.
Most sustainable universities in the UK
These are the 10 most sustainable universities in the UK:
- Manchester Metropolitan University – 86.3%
- King's College London – 79.5%
- Nottingham Trent University – 78.8%
- De Montfort University – 78.1%
- Cardiff Metropolitan University – 76.9%
- University of Worcester – 76.9%
- University of The Arts, London – 75.8%
- University of Bedfordshire – 75.2%
- Plymouth University – 73.9%
- Swansea University – 73.8%
If you're wondering how Manchester Metropolitan University managed to come out top in these rankings, it probably had something to do with scoring 100% for environmental policies, 100% for carbon reduction, 100% for environmental auditing and management systems, and (you guessed it!) 100% for sustainability staff. Wow.
Manchester Metropolitan University's response
How did Manchester Metropolitan University respond to being number one for sustainability?
Professor Malcolm Press, Vice-Chancellor of Manchester Metropolitan University, told us:
We are absolutely delighted that our important work on sustainability has been recognised in this way. Sustainability forms an integral part of everything that we do, from our teaching and research, to the way that we build and use our campus.
We know that the environment is one of the top concerns for people of all ages and this award demonstrates the pivotal role that sustainability plays in university life at Manchester Metropolitan.
While places like Manchester Metropolitan University are leading the way in terms of sustainability, others, in comparison, are doing much (much!) less. Let's hope your uni doesn't appear on the list below.
10 least sustainable universities
These are the 10 worst universities for sustainability:
- University of Bolton – 6.3%
- Royal College of Art – 5.1%
- Ravensbourne University London – 4.8%
- University College Birmingham – 4.7%
- Norwich University of the Arts – 4.5%
- Stranmillis University College – 3.1%
- Royal Academy of Music – 2.4%
- Courtauld Institute of Art – 2.4%
- The University College of Osteopathy – 2.3%
- University of Sunderland – 0.7%
Scoring 0% across 11 categories, including sustainable food, workers' rights, sustainability staff and ethical investment, the University of Sunderland is placed 154th out of 154 universities.
But, it's important to note that, if People & Planet can't find information for some categories (i.e. if the university hasn't made some info public), they will give them a score of zero. So, we hope, the University of Sunderland may be a bit more sustainable than the results suggest.
If you've not seen your university yet, check out the full university league table for sustainability below.
Full university league table for sustainability
Ranking | University | Total score |
---|---|---|
1 | Manchester Metropolitan University | 86.3% |
2 | King's College London | 79.5% |
3 | Nottingham Trent University | 78.8% |
4 | De Montfort University | 78.1% |
5= | Cardiff Metropolitan University | 76.9% |
5= | University of Worcester | 76.9% |
7 | University of The Arts, London (UAL) | 75.8% |
8 | University of Bedfordshire | 75.2% |
9 | Plymouth University | 73.9% |
10 | Swansea University | 73.8% |
11 | London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) | 72.9% |
12 | University of Salford | 72.6% |
13 | City, University of London | 71.9% |
14 | Bournemouth University | 70.2% |
15 | University of Reading | 69.9% |
16 | University of Exeter | 69.8% |
17= | Aston University | 69.5% |
17= | Northumbria University | 69.5% |
19 | University College London (UCL) | 68.6% |
20 | University of Bristol | 67.3% |
21 | Newcastle University | 67.2% |
22 | Coventry University | 66.8% |
23 | University of Greenwich | 66.6% |
24 | University of The West of England, Bristol (UWE) | 63.7% |
25 | University of Oxford | 62.9% |
26 | University of Winchester | 62.8% |
27 | Keele University | 62.4% |
28= | Bangor University | 61.8% |
28= | Middlesex University | 61.8% |
30 | Durham University | 60.4% |
31= | Bath Spa University | 60.2% |
31= | Birmingham City University | 60.2% |
33 | University of Brighton | 59.6% |
34 | University of Leeds | 59.5% |
35 | University of Hull | 59.4% |
36 | Queen Mary University of London | 58.2% |
37 | University of Derby | 57.9% |
38 | London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine | 57.5% |
39 | University of Wales Trinity Saint David | 56.1% |
40 | University of East Anglia | 56% |
41 | University of Kent | 55.9% |
42 | Glyndwr University | 55.3% |
43 | Edinburgh Napier University | 55.2% |
44= | Cardiff University | 55% |
44= | Sheffield Hallam University | 55% |
46 | University of Liverpool | 54.2% |
47 | Anglia Ruskin University | 53% |
48 | Birkbeck, University of London | 52.9% |
49 | Liverpool John Moores University | 52.6% |
50= | Guildhall School of Music and Drama | 52.4% |
50= | University of Huddersfield | 52.4% |
52 | SOAS University of London | 51.7% |
53= | University of Nottingham | 51.3% |
53= | University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) | 51.3% |
55 | University of Leicester | 50.9% |
56 | London Metropolitan University | 50.8% |
57 | University of West London | 50.6% |
58 | University of Bradford | 50.3% |
59 | University of Warwick | 50.1% |
60= | University of Sheffield | 49.5% |
60= | Arts University Bournemouth | 49.5% |
62 | University of Essex | 49% |
63 | Cranfield University | 48.9% |
64 | Glasgow Caledonian University | 48.8% |
65 | Solent University | 48.2% |
66 | Imperial College London | 48% |
67 | University of Lincoln | 47.8% |
68 | University of Manchester | 47.7% |
69 | Oxford Brookes University | 47.3% |
70 | Leeds Beckett University | 46.9% |
71 | University of Portsmouth | 46.8% |
72 | University of Edinburgh | 46% |
73 | Kingston University | 44.8% |
74= | Loughborough University | 44.5% |
74= | University of Surrey | 44.5% |
76 | University of Bath | 44% |
77 | Ulster University | 42.5% |
78 | Canterbury Christ Church University | 42.3% |
79 | Lancaster University | 41.8% |
80 | Buckinghamshire New University | 41.6% |
81 | University of Northampton | 41.4% |
82= | University of Cambridge | 40.8% |
82= | University of Gloucestershire | 40.8% |
84 | University of Glasgow | 40.3% |
85 | Edge Hill University | 40.1% |
86 | University of South Wales | 39.8% |
87 | Queen's University of Belfast | 39.6% |
88 | University of St Andrews | 39.1% |
89= | University of Aberdeen | 39% |
89= | University of Westminster | 39% |
91= | University of Strathclyde | 38.6% |
91= | Teesside University | 38.6% |
93 | University of York | 36.9% |
94 | Brunel University London | 36.7% |
95 | Liverpool Hope University | 35.6% |
96 | University of Hertfordshire | 35.5% |
97 | University of Stirling | 34.8% |
98= | University of Chester | 34.5% |
98= | University of Cumbria | 34.5% |
98= | University for the Creative Arts | 34.5% |
101 | University of Chichester | 34.3% |
102 | University of Suffolk | 34.1% |
103 | Royal Holloway University of London | 32.4% |
104 | York St John University | 32% |
105 | University of The West of Scotland (UWS) | 31% |
106 | Glasgow School of Art | 30.4% |
107 | University of East London | 29.9% |
108 | University of Sussex | 29.5% |
109 | Heriot-Watt University | 28.8% |
110 | Aberystwyth University | 28.5% |
111 | Newman University | 28.1% |
112 | Goldsmiths University of London | 27.8% |
113 | Staffordshire University | 27.7% |
114 | University of Abertay Dundee | 27.4% |
115 | Robert Gordon University | 27.3% |
116 | Harper Adams University | 25.7% |
117 | The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama | 25.4% |
118 | Royal Veterinary College | 25.3% |
119 | Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance | 25% |
120 | University of Southampton | 24.9% |
121 | University of Wolverhampton | 23.7% |
122 | Falmouth University | 22.9% |
123 | St. Mary's University College Belfast | 22.5% |
124 | Leeds Trinity University | 22.2% |
125 | University of the Highlands and Islands | 21.3% |
126 | Bishop Grosseteste University | 20.8% |
127 | Royal College of Music London | 20.7% |
128 | University of Dundee | 20.4% |
129 | Roehampton University | 20.2% |
130= | Queen Margaret University | 19.8% |
130= | Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance | 19.8% |
132= | University of St Mark and St John | 19.1% |
132= | St Mary's University Twickenham | 19.1% |
134 | London South Bank University | 18.9% |
135 | The Institute of Cancer Research | 18.6% |
136= | St George's University of London | 15.3% |
136= | Leeds Arts University | 15.3% |
138 | University of Birmingham | 13.1% |
139 | Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine | 12.7% |
140 | Royal Agricultural University | 12.5% |
141 | Writtle University College | 12% |
142 | Royal Northern College of Music | 9.3% |
143 | The Open University | 8.3% |
144 | London Business School | 7.9% |
145 | University of Bolton | 6.3% |
146 | Royal College of Art | 5.1% |
147 | Ravensbourne University London | 4.8% |
148 | University College Birmingham | 4.7% |
149 | Norwich University of the Arts | 4.5% |
150 | Stranmillis University College | 3.1% |
151= | Royal Academy of Music | 2.4% |
151= | Courtauld Institute of Art | 2.4% |
153 | The University College of Osteopathy | 2.3% |
154 | University of Sunderland | 0.7% |
How to live sustainably on a budget

Credit: Watchara Ritjan – Shutterstock
Sometimes, it can feel like an impossible task to save the environment and your bank account. But, thankfully, there are ways to live more sustainably without spending a fortune.
One easy way to cut down on plastic waste, and save money in the process, is by no longer buying cups of coffee or bottled drinks while you're out.
Buying a reusable container like a travel coffee cup will make a massive difference. After the initial purchases, you'll be able to fill them up for free with tap water or get small discounts off hot drinks at some chain coffee shops for using your own cup.
Also, you can avoid food waste (and the extra cost of replacing out-of-date food) with some careful changes to how you buy and store food. Check out our tips on how to keep food fresh for longer as well as which foods should go in the fridge if you want them to last longer.
On top of this, there are loads of things you can recycle for money, such as clothes, plastic bags, mobile phones and more.
And it's worth reading our guide on how to cut down on plastic and save money to see how to reduce your environmental impact without doing some serious damage to your bank balance instead.
Find out the best ways to reduce your carbon footprint – the tips can help you save (or even make) money.
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