Council increases support for energy-efficiency homes in bid to tackle climate change

A new £20,000 fund will be made available to residents this winter to help make their homes more energy efficient.

A biannual report on climate action presented at a full Council meeting on Wednesday goes on to highlight how tackling climate change is a key priority for the Council and a focus of its Covid-19 Recovery Plan.

A project to fast track the assessment of energy performance and sustainability of Council-owned offices has also been agreed. This will contribute to future decisions made by the Council on office space designed to be fit for the future.

Climate action is also now the ‘golden thread’ woven into the draft Area Action Plan at Salt Cross Garden Village. These draft planning policies expect exemplary standards for all new development, both residential and non-residential.

Climate action and sustainability standards have also been captured within the recent consultation draft Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) for Affordable Housing.

Cllr David Harvey, Cabinet Member for Climate Change, said: “We have taken great strides in a very short time when it comes to delivering our commitment to tackling climate change. Climate action underpins the Council’s decision making.

“We must ensure we continue to work as hard as we possibly can both now and in the long term so that we can lead by example and make a difference that will genuinely help shape the District for future generations.

“It is clear from the widespread engagement with our recent Climate Action Survey and from the art we received from young people entering our climate action competition that climate change is widely felt to be an important issue. We are harnessing this in our Carbon Action Plan and Climate Change Strategy, which are now taking shape.”

The Council has a public-facing Climate Action Network and database of people looking to engage with its work on Climate Action. If you would like to add your details to this database, please email: [email protected]