Welcome To The Surrey Sustainable Professionals Group

Join us as we work together to achieve the system change that’s needed to create a better future for people and planet through professional advice.

Who are we and what are our aims?

We are a group of Accountants, Solicitors, Financial Advisers, Investment Managers and Tax advisers supported by academics from the University of Surrey Centre for Environment & Sustainability.

We are exploring the question, “What is sustainable professional advice?”

We aim to share best practice across the professions and provide recommendations to speed up the development of professional advice which aligns with a survivable future.

After a year of meetings and exploring this topic, we are now seeking wider engagement, and we invite you to join the conversation.

Our Aims

  • Identify barriers
  • Practical solutions and models
  • Explore tricky and challenging ideas
  • Share best practices and learnings
  • Breakdown silios
  • Engage professional bodies
  • Support specialist groups
  • Peer Support
  • Borrow and build on ideas from other professionals

Do you provide a regulated professional service? Are you concerned about the impact we're having on people and planet through our professional advice?

The Surrey Sustainable Professionals Group (SSPG) was formed in late 2023 to address the growing concern many of us feel relating to sustainability, the climate emergency and broader societal impact. 

As regulated professional service providers, we’re trusted advisors who want to do all we can to do “the right thing” and make a difference. But what is “the right thing”? As a professional advisor, where do you start? And – critically – how do you enact change in a world designed to deliver unsustainable advice?

By joining a network of engaged frontline professionals, we can start to address these problems and make real positive changes. We’ve started this journey by exploring the key issues through the SSPG…

…but we need as much input and engagement as possible to make the impact that’s needed. We need to know what is happening in your world, what is blocking you from making positive change, and what would help you get there.

That’s what the Surrey Sustainable Professionals is all about.

Get registered today (FREE)

Simply leave your details and we’ll share the resources we’ve developed so far, as well as ways to get involve

Why Surrey Sustainable Professionals?

Climate breakdown

Our clients stand to suffer from inevitable climate impacts. Yet, we see limited guidance from our professional bodies and regulators to help us align our advice with a sustainable future.

A powerful opportunity to change systems

As regulated professional service providers we hold powerful potential to create real change at the systemic level, prioritising positive impact through our professional advice and influence.

Knowing you are not alone

Our members come from every sort of firm, whether long on the sustainability journey or just starting out. We can connect and learn from each other.

Our First Publication

Created following a series of intensive working groups throughout 2024, the first publication of the Surrey Sustainable Professionals Group is a cross-disciplinary perspective from regulated professional advisers.

The Key Findings of the SSPG

  • Silos

    Insufficient collaboration and engagement across the professions, and we must remove the silos to make progress

  • Inconsistency

    Clients are receiving mixed messages from their respective professional advisors

  • Support

    Frontline practitioners feel that professional body support is currently inadequate to support the transition of our professions and economy

  • Education

    Sustainability training and education should be mandatory for all professionals.

  • Impact

    Advised emissions could have a huge impact on professional services but it requires tough choices

  • Law

    Fiduciary duty could be used strategically to force firms to change through collective action

  • System change

    Firms and professional bodies should work together to facilitate system change

Download the full report and summaries, and get involved

Surrey Sustainable Professionals is just getting started. We’d love for you to get involved. By sharing your details, you will get:

  • Access to the full white paper
  • Summaries of the key working group findings
  • Chances to share your own insights
  • Networking opportunities with peers
  • Invitations to local and online events

If you’d prefer to learn more about the Surrey Sustainable Professionals Group, you can also contact rebecca@switchfootaccounting.co.uk or Seb@switchfootwealth.co.uk.