This article is part of a series on ESG Reporting . Read 'ESG Reporting - Issues and Benefits' to learn more.
If you’ve been handed “ESG” in a UK SME, you’re not alone. Often it lands on someone’s desk alongside their day job—operations, finance, HR, procurement, or bids—because a customer asked questions, a lender wanted information, or the board wants “something credible” on sustainability.
The problem is that ESG reporting can look like a maze: frameworks, emissions scopes, supplier questionnaires, and changing expectations. The good news is that most UK SMEs don’t need to do everything. They need to do the right minimum, in the right order, with evidence to back it up.
This guide shows you how to start ESG reporting in a way that’s calm, practical, and useful.
First: what “ESG reporting” means for most UK SMEs
For most SMEs, ESG reporting is not a glossy annual report. It’s usually one or more of these:
- Responding to customer or tender ESG questionnaires
- Providing ESG info to lenders, insurers, or investors
- Creating a simple ESG page or statement that won’t backfire
- Building a baseline (especially emissions) so you can show progress
- Putting basic governance in place so numbers are consistent year to year
So your goal isn’t perfection but credibility and repeatability.
Step 1: Write down why you’re doing this
Before collecting a single data point, get clear on what’s driving the request. Ask:
- Who is asking (customer, procurement, lender, board, parent company)
- What do they need (questionnaire answers, emissions numbers, policies, targets)
- When do they need it (tender deadline vs annual reporting)
- How it will be used (risk assessment, supplier scoring, marketing, compliance).
This stops you building a “full ESG programme” when you actually need a tender pack.
Output: a 1-page “ESG purpose statement” you can share internally.
Step 2: Decide your reporting scope (keep it small, then expand)
A common SME mistake is trying to report on everything: all sites, all suppliers, and every ESG theme under the sun.
Start with a scope that reflects your real-world need:
- Organisation boundary (your UK legal entity, or group if reporting is centralised)
- Time period (last financial year or last 12 months)
- Operational boundary (main operations you control such as sites, fleet, energy use, key policies).
You can expand later. A tight scope reduces data chaos and avoids inconsistent numbers.
Output: a simple statement like: “This ESG summary covers our UK operations for FY2025/26 and includes energy use, business travel, workforce metrics, and governance controls.”
Step 3: Choose a “minimum viable ESG” set of topics
Most SMEs can start with 8 to 12 topics that cover typical stakeholder questions.
Environmental:
- Energy use
- Scope 1 and 2 emissions (minimum)
- Business travel (often a quick win)
- Waste (basic approach and volumes if available).
Social:
- Headcount and turnover
- Health and safety (incidents, training)
- Training and development
- Modern slavery or supply chain approach (even if not legally required)
- Diversity basics can be included if appropriate and lawful to collect.
Governance:
- Basic policies (anti-bribery, whistleblowing, data protection, health and safety)
- Leadership oversight (who is accountable for ESG)
- Risk management approach (how you handle ESG risks)
- Supplier standards or a simple code of conduct.
Output: a short topic list that you commit to reporting consistently.
Step 4: Start with a questionnaire map, not a framework
Frameworks can be helpful later, but most SMEs are reacting to external asks. So start by mapping the questions you actually receive.
Create a simple spreadsheet with columns :
- Question asked
- Who asked it (customer, lender, tender)
- Data required
- Owner (finance, HR, ops, procurement)
- Evidence you can provide, and status (available or needs work)
You’ll quickly see patterns: most questions repeat and can be standardised into a reusable response pack.
Output: an “ESG Questionnaire Master File” that becomes your SME reporting engine.
Step 5: Get your emissions “good enough” (without panic)
Emissions cause the most stress because they’re technical and everyone talks about Scope 3. For SMEs, the priority is usually:
Start Here (Week 1-4)
- Scope 2 electricity (from bills or landlord data)
- Scope 1 fuels (gas, company vehicles if fuel is paid centrally)
- Business travel (mileage, rail, flights if relevant)
That already answers a large chunk of supplier requests.
Add later (Month 2-6):
More detail, such as fleet breakdowns
Refrigerants if you operate cooling systems
First-pass Scope 3 view for the categories that matter most to you.
Key principle: you can use estimates, but you must document methodology and limitations.
Output: an Emissions Baseline Note describing what you included, what you didn’t, and why.
Step 6: Build an evidence folder (this is what makes you credible)
If you only do one grown-up thing in ESG reporting, do this: keep evidence.
Create a shared folder with subfolders for:
- Energy bills and meter readings
- Travel reports and mileage exports
- Waste invoices and contracts
- Health and safety logs and training records
- Policies (anti-bribery, whistleblowing, H&S, privacy)
- Supplier code or onboarding docs,
- Methodology notes explaining how calculations were done.
This helps you:
- Respond quickly to questionnaires
- Stay consistent year-on-year
- Avoid accidental greenwashing
- Be ready if someone asks for assurance.
Output: a tidy evidence pack you can point to internally.
Step 7: Put simple ownership in place (so it doesn’t become chaos)
ESG falls apart when nobody owns the numbers. You don’t need a committee, just clarity.
A simple SME approach:
- One accountable owner who owns the ESG pack
- Data owners by function (HR owns people metrics, finance owns energy bills, ops owns waste, procurement owns suppliers)
- A director who reviews and signs off the final pack once per year or per tender.
If possible, write a mini-RACI (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) for your ESG topics.
Output: an “ESG responsibilities” page that saves endless back-and-forth.
Step 8: Write a simple ESG summary (avoid marketing language)
You may need a short ESG statement for your website or bids. Keep it factual.
A safe structure is:
- What matters to your business (2–4 priority topics)
- What you’re measuring (baseline KPIs)
- What you’re doing (key actions)
- What’s next (realistic targets)
- How you ensure accuracy (ownership plus evidence pack).
Avoid vague claims like “eco-friendly” unless you can prove them.
Output: a 400–800 word ESG summary statement that won’t embarrass you later.
A realistic first 30/60/90-day plan
First 30 days: get control
- Clarify the driver (customer/lender/tender)
- Set scope
- Build the questionnaire master file
- Collect bills and travel data
- Create the evidence folder.
60 days: produce something reusable
baseline Scope 1 and 2 (plus travel if relevant),
Define your 8–12 topics and owner
Draft the ESG summary
Standardise questionnaire answers.
90 days: improve quality
Fill key gaps (waste, H&S, supplier policy)
Document calculation methods
Add one or two practical targets you can track
Create a repeatable annual update process.
Common mistakes to avoid (so you don’t burn out)
- Trying to do Scope 3 perfectly on day one
- Collecting data without defining scope or ownership
- Publishing ambitious claims without evidence
- Letting every questionnaire become a bespoke project
- Not documenting methodology even when you’re estimating.
What “good” looks like for a UK SME ESG pack
A credible SME ESG reporting pack usually includes:
- A 1-page ESG summary
- A KPI table with 8–12 metrics
- A simple emissions baseline (Scope 1 and 2 minimum)
- A policy pack (ethics, H&S, privacy, modern slavery approach)
- An evidence folder (invoices, exports, calculations)
- Clear ownership with an annual refresh process.
That’s enough to satisfy most customers and tender, and it’s a foundation you can build on.
