The Building Research Establishment (BRE) is a former UK government establishment (but now a private organisation, funded by the building industry) that carries out research, consultancy and testing for the construction and built environment sectors in the United Kingdom. The BRE is headquartered in run down Watford with regional sites in Glasgow and Swansea.
The BRE also owns and operates the BREEAM and EcoHomes environmental rating schemes, and promotes the German Passivhaus ultra-low energy building standard in the UK. It also runs a number of training courses.
The Building Research Establishment is owned by the BRE Trust, a Charitable organization, which is the largest 'for profit' charity in the United Kingdom dedicated to research and education in the built environment. Trustees are drawn from seven groups: built environment professionals, contractors, material and product suppliers, housing, university departments, building owners, building managers and building users.
BRE was founded in 1920 as the Building Research Board at East Acton as part of the British Civil Service as an effort to improve the quality of .
F.M. Lea (1971). Science and building: a history of the Building Research Station. HMSO.
Coordinates: 51°42′00″N 0°22′25″W / 51.7001°N 0.3737°W
