GRESB is an industry backed organisation committed to assessing the environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance of real assets, including real estate portfolios and infrastructure assets globally. This year 903 property companies, REITs, funds, and developers participated in the GRESB assessment.

LGS’ Head of Property, Scott Armstrong, said: “LGS is proud to be awarded a 5-star GRESB rating, and our highest score to date. The score of 85/100 places us 2^nd in our peer group, which is a great achievement given our peers have more sizable and higher grade portfolios.”

“Our aim is to continually improve the environmental performance of our direct property assets. Over the past seven years, we’ve reduced our electricity consumption by 42% and our water consumption by 52%. We’re actively working with our tenants to further reduce energy consumption and remain at the forefront of sustainability management.”

LGS Chief Investment Officer, Craig Turnbull, said “this GRESB rating reflects our ongoing commitment to invest in a range of responsible assets on behalf of our members, so they can reap the benefits of long-term sustainable returns.”

The GRESB Assessment evaluates performance against seven ESG categories, including management practices, green building certifications, and stakeholder engagement programs. The Assessment also contains approximately 50 performance indicators, such as energy consumption, GHG emissions, water consumption and waste.

LGS has been widely recognised for its commitment to responsible investment and local and global initiatives:

• Named Australia’s Best Green Super Fund for the sixth time at the 2018 Money magazine ‘Best of the Best’ awards.
• Founding signatory and the sole Australian signatory to the Green Bond Pledge.
• Awarded a fixed-income ESG mandate to PIMCO for approximately AUD $440 million.
• No.1 ranking for the management of climate change in the global 2017 Asset Owners Disclosure Project.

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In this role, Mr Armstrong will be responsible for managing LGS’ Local Government Property Fund (LGPF), an unlisted fund comprising of NSW property assets across the commercial, retail and industrial sectors.

Mr Armstrong brings to the role over 20 years’ experience in real estate management operating across diverse portfolios, having held senior roles with ASX listed property fund managers such as ING Real Estate and DEXUS as well as wholesale funds and development companies such as FKP Property Group.

Prior to taking his role with LGS, Mr Armstrong was Portfolio Manager of Direct Property for Uniting Financial Services (UFS), the $1b treasury and investment arm of the Uniting Church in Australia. During this time he managed a $260m direct property portfolio. Significantly, Mr Armstrong was integral in managing UFS’ direct property portfolio in accordance with the sustainable and ethical investment principles of the Church, particularly with respect to exposure to areas such as extractive industries, alcohol and gambling.

LGS Chief Executive Officer, Peter Lambert, said, “Scott has impressive experience across the full spectrum of property assets and their management. His deep understanding of the risks and investment characteristics of property will ensure he continues to steer the LGS’ property portfolio in a manner that will benefit our members.”

Mr Lambert also singled out Mr Armstrong’s track record in sustainable investing, in line with LGS’ own strong commitment, as a major factor in his appointment.

“Scott clearly understands not only the importance of sustainability in investing but how to successfully put those sustainable principles at the heart of the portfolio. He has a demonstrated ability to secure strong long-term outcomes through active management.”

Mr Armstrong commenced his role at LGS on Tuesday 7 October, replacing Andrew Kim.

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