We are thrilled that as of January 2026, all of our research groups have achieved their LEAF Silver! This fantastic achievement reflects their dedication to improving sustainability in their groups and services. 

Cancer Research UK is committed to reducing direct and indirect emissions by 50% by 2030 and reaching net zero by 2050.

Having all completed their LEAF Bronze in 2025, the CRUK Scotland Institute’s labs have put in the work to achieve their Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Framework (LEAF) Certification at the Silver Level. 

A special congratulations to Dave Bryant’s group for going the extra step and achieving their LEAF Gold!

A particular focus of the Silver level was reducing single-use plastics and sharing alternative solutions for these amongst all lab users. By following the 5 R’s - Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose and Recycle, our groups were able to cut out some single use plastics in favour of washable glass and pyrex and reusable plastic beakers, tubes and flasks. When it was essential to use sterile plastic, they reviewed their experimental designs and opted for smaller size plastics, generating much less waste. Non-hazardous plastics which can be cleaned and dried were then sent for recycling or returned to the supplier, preventing useful materials from being incinerated. Surplus consumables are now routinely shared between groups preventing further waste. Some groups have been using a new Institute provided service to supply commonly ordered chemicals. This prevents unnecessary duplicate orders of the same materials.

This has been a huge team effort, thank you to all of our LEAF representatives who have worked hard to lead their teams through the process and our auditors: Karen Thomas and Nikola Vlahov.