The Government have set aside £15 million to support organisations to undertake Heat Decarbonisation Plans (HDP) something the Trust doesn’t currently have in place for our estate.
To set the scene: the world has responded to the threat that global warming brings. Many organisations up and down the country have declared a climate emergency as more understand how our reliance on fossil fuel is threatening our planet.
The UK has a legally binding target to reduce its emissions to Net Zero by 2050 under the Climate Change Act, which also introduced a series of carbon budgets up to 2050, which set interim targets for emissions reductions.
As the public sector accounts for around 2% of all UK emissions, and the built environment accounts for around 40%, it is crucial for the public sector to show leadership and make a contribution to the delivery of Net Zero, by reducing its emissions, and in particular its direct emissions, which arise predominantly as a result of heating. A starting point in decarbonising is to have in place a heat decarbonisation plan, which demonstrates how an organisation will reduce its emissions.
Our Plan: BDAT announced back in November 2021 our aim is to go zero by 2030, in conjunction with the Diocese of Leeds, CST and their strategic partner Ashden. This is now a key part of our Estate Vision.
The Good News: We have just been informed that our bid for £71,490 LCSF has been successful but, and there is always a but, we need to have spent these funds and produced the HDP’s before the end of March 2022. This is where we need your help. Rider Levett Bucknall (RLB) have been appointed this week to undertake this piece of work and will need to visit each school next month. A programme of works will be provided but your help in accommodating their attendance and any requests for information would be greatly appreciated. With this information to hand we will be able to prioritise how we improve the estate and reduce emissions in line with out 2030 target date.
We would also like to capture the good initiatives happening right now in your schools so we can share good practice and all benefit from a greener planet. Why not join the Let’s Go Zero campaign, by Ashden and help make a difference to our plant and our students futures.