Category: Energy Saving

50% carbon cuts and £1.5million savings a year – The Natural England Success Story

10:10 and Newnham Croft Primary School, Cambridge, UK invites you to a talk:

 50% carbon cuts and £1.5million savings a year

The Natural England success story and how to make it work for you

by

Mr Paul Hinds, Head of Sustainability at Natural England

Monday 21st November, 6.30pm – 9pm Newnham Croft Primary School, Chedworth Street, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire CB3 9JF, England

RSVP to krysia@1010uk.org to secure your spot

In 2006 the Natural England Board committed the organisation to reduce the carbon emissions of 50% by the end of 2010.

Paul was the man charged with achieving it.

Come along to hear him talk about exactly how they hit their goal and offer advice and guidance on how you can do the same.

The evening is being hosted by 10:10 Solar School – Newnham Croft who will also be talking a little bit about how, with the help of their community, they are setting out to be become a cleaner, greener primary school.

Drinks and refreshments will be provided after Paul’s talk.

Natural England Website

10:10 Website

Newnham Croft Primary School Solar Project

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‘Warmer Bath’ – a guide to making historic buildings more energy efficient.

‘Warmer Bath’ – a guide to making Bath’s historic buildings more energy efficient is the final product of the Low Carbon Bath project, a collaboration between the Bath Preservation Trust and Bristol’s Centre for Sustainable Energy. The project was funded by the government’s Department for Communities and Local Government. The project began with a series of workshops and a public meeting which explored local attitudes to preserving the historic environment of Bath and tackling climate change. Workshops were run for people with a strong interest in heritage, people involved in local green groups, building professionals and school pupils.

Download the Guide

The guidance, co-authored by Will Anderson, working as a researcher for CSE, and Joanna Robinson, Conservation Officer at Bath Preservation Trust, provides details of a range of energy conservation measures appropriate for Bath’s traditional buildings. It is the project’s ambition that this guidance makes a major contribution to the development of Bath and North East Somerset Council’s Local Development Framework.

The project grew from a recognition that there are increasing pressures on the owners and managers of historic property to contribute towards climate change mitigation. The City of Bath World Heritage Site is an historic landscape that is extremely vulnerable to change that could detract from its architectural character, authenticity, natural landscape and historic interest, and careful management is necessary.

Caroline Kay, Chief Executive of Bath Preservation Trust, said: “This guidance represents a really important shared agenda for the conservation and environmental lobbies. It is a step forward for Bath house holders, and by extension for those in other historic cities.”

CSE Chief Executive, Simon Roberts, added: “What goes for Bath, goes for other places, too. Finding a way to sympathetically adapt our older housing, and move beyond the energy efficiency standards of their Georgian and Victorian builders, lies at the heart of a viable domestic carbon reduction strategy.”

 

 

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Hyson Green Eco House – Nottingham, UK

The Partnership Council is a community charity based in Radford, Nottingham, UK has been given planning permission by Nottingham City Council to convert a small terraced house on St Paul’s Terrace in Hyson Green into the Hyson Green Eco House.

The Eco House will be used as a base for money-saving information and community workshops to help local people save money on fuel bills. Free workshops will teach simple, affordable DIY techniques, which people can use in their own homes.

Nottingham City Homes will lend the property to the Partnership Council, to help improve the quality of life for local families. We are now just awaiting the final paperwork.

Moby Farrands from the Partnership Council, who’s been planning the project, said:

“Other Eco Houses in the UK have cost thousands of pounds to reduce their energy bills. Most are large houses with big gardens, owned by organisations or people who can afford expensive adjustments – installing heat pumps, solar panels and hi-tech insulation.

Our Eco House has a concrete back yard and a draughty front door into the living room,  its like many local houses.  We will show you can cut costs in a small house on a tiny budget, using your own skills, with help from fellow volunteers and recycled materials.

We will start with activities like sewing and putting up thermal curtains, draught-proofing floor boards, growing food on a small budget- not like the ‘Grand Designs’ Eco homes on the TV programme. We are keen to hear from anyone with their own home-grown designs or a skill to share – DIY, sewing, recycling or container-gardening. And a fun bit- we want some volunteers to build us a bicycle smoothie-maker.”

Key Motivation

Moby said that:

“Our Eco House Project is motivated by the findings that impoverished owner occupiers and tenants of private landlords have limited resources and little motivation for projects for carbon reduction. Our Project aims to help people with small scale DIY projects, and to experiment with alternatives to expensive options, with the focus on reduced fuel bills. We will hope to give information and support with applications for grants for more hi-tech options, and to campaign with public authorities for larger scale action. Our main focus is small old terraced housing, much of which will still be accommodation for the poor in 20 to 30 years time in many Midlands and Northern cities.”

More information

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