Local Authority Carbon Management
Participants of past and and current Public Sector Management (xls)
Why take part?
We believe local authorities have a leading role to play in creating a low-carbon economy and have much to benefit from reducing costs through energy efficiency. Their success will be rated by the National Performance Indicators, which will measure local authorities’ performance in three areas. In addition, the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme requires that local authorities be legally and financially responsible for the emissions from schools within their local area.
What is involved?
Our Carbon Management service provides the expertise your local authority needs to identify and then effectively implement practical cost and carbon savings.
Our aim is to enable you to reduce the emissions under local authority control, including buildings, vehicle fleets, street lighting, and waste.
Our service guides participating organisations through a structured process that:
- builds a team
- measures cost and carbon footprint
- identifies and prioritises projects
- creates a case for action
We make sure you have all the consultant support you need by providing workshops, teleconferences, webinars and national events. Our service takes the form of a 5-step process.
The 5 step process
How is Carbon Management different?
Even if your organisation has already reduced its carbon emissions, you can still benefit from Carbon Management. Have a think about the following questions:
- Is everyone in your organisation thinking about carbon reduction?
- Has your organisation recorded its £ savings made through energy reduction so far?
- Is there a list of future short, medium, and long-term measures in place to ensure green growth?
- Does your organisation know how cost-efficient these measures will be?
If the answer to any of the above is "no", you should seriously consider applying to be on the next round of the carbon management service.
How to apply
Our service starts in May every year and all we need from you is a commitment of two days a week for 10 months. If you would like your organisation to be considered for the next phase, please email publicsector@carbontrust.co.uk, and include your:
- title, forename and surname
- position and organisation
- telephone number
- annual energy bill, and what this bill includes
Collaborative Low Carbon Schools Service
This year-long programme is designed to increase capacity and knowledge around energy efficiency in the local authority schools estate. The service enables local authorities and schools to drive quick payback, low cost, energy saving measures.
Engaging initially with a pilot group of schools, the service will then develop the capability to roll out support to all schools. Savings of between 8% and 30% on energy bills have been demonstrated within 8 months of the start of the programme.
The service covers seven key steps to effective school Carbon Management, while offering a flexible approach so that authorities can set and achieve their own goals for carbon reduction within an overall support framework. If you would like your organisation to be considered for the service, please email publicsector@carbontrust.co.uk, with "Collaborative Low Carbon Schools Service" in the subject line and include your:
- title, forename and surname
- position and organisation
- telephone number
- annual energy bill, and what this bill includes
Delivering Energy Management Workshops to Regional Stakeholders
We can help you find an accredited consultant to run your Energy Management workshops.
Strategic Design Advice (SDA)
Accredited expertise to help identify and implement carbon reduction in the design, construction and review of new or large developments. The Carbon Trust, together with a small pool of highly-skilled and accredited consultants, will work with your team to challenge conventional design standards and provide strategic interventions to ensure that carbon and life-cycle costs are accounted for throughout the design process. Advice is provided in two areas, Low Carbon Buildings Design Advice and Data Centre Design Advice.
Low Carbon Buildings (LCBDA)
Three streams of work are available to help customers planning a new development, or refurbishment project.
- Stream 1: New build construction and multi-site template designs. Working with your design team, this service aims to set buildings’ emissions targets and meet them through strategic interventions during the design and build process.
- Stream 2: The Carbon Manager. The Carbon Manager can be engaged at any point through the construction process to act as a “critical friend” on issues relating to the carbon impact of the build process, embodied carbon, life-cycle assessments and value engineering and post-occupancy evaluation.
- Stream 3: Decentralised energy. Support to the public sector and developers on local energy networks incorporating renewable technologies and district heating
Ideally, the customer is engaged early on in order to optimally influence decisions around site selection, building orientation, architectural and passive design, as well as energy strategies including renewables.
Data Centre (DCDA)
This service will reduce your carbon footprint, your operational energy costs, the burden of CRC, and provide resilience to current and future legislation.
With a low carbon focus firmly on the client, the service can either set the scope for a new data centre, or review the performance of an existing one. It looks at software and what data storage might be required, hardware and how many servers are needed, and facilities support such as associated building and engineering services.
The client is able to select design configurations, having compared recommended vendors’ hardware, and capital and operational cost – an holistic calculation with both IT and the supporting infrastructure in mind.
The efficient operation of the facility is paramount: essential testing, written guidelines, and training of the client’s teams all ensure an optimal and low carbon occupation.
Get in touch now and find out how to apply for design advice:
Collaborative Implementation Programmes
To help progress implementation, Local Authorities with similar carbon reduction projects are taken through a series of workshops run by leading experts in key technology areas.
Starting with an introduction to the technology, the workshops address common and sector-specific barriers to implementation. The implementation process is mapped, looking at performance specifications, design, tendering and installation, advice on contractual negotiation and practical examples from within the region where available. Each attendee will create a detailed action plan to take away. Technology days include:
- Renewable Heating technologies. with a focus on Biomass
- Building-integrated renewables
- Decentralised Energy, Combined Heat & Power and District Heating
- Electrical energy efficiency within buildings
- Focus on voltage management
- Motors and Variable speed Drives
- Effective behavioural change
If you are interested in our collaborative implementation programmes, please contact us.
Carbon Trust Implementation can also help you obtain a set of high quality, competitive proposals for an energy efficiency project at no upfront cost.
Low Carbon Planning Toolkit
Helping local authorities to realise their low carbon planning goals
Enplanner, the Low Carbon Planning Toolkit, makes it quick and easy for local authorities to check that applicants have met their requirements for onsite low carbon energy generation and lower carbon developments.
With Enplanner local authorities can:
- present their requirements in the clearest way to applicants
- quickly check their energy statements to make sure projects meet requirements
- access the full project details – so you don’t have to check every statement in detail.
How does it work?
Enplanner can be used on any PC connected to the internet. It takes basic details about an applicant’s development, including:
- Location and size
- Building types and numbers
- SBEM and SAP data.
Using this information, applicants can:
- view your planning policy – as you want them to see it
- check free resources onsite and available technologies
- explore different technology and building specifications
- produce and submit standardised energy statements
- manage unlimited developments.
Fast energy checks
You can check applicants’ energy statements to make sure the development meets your requirements, and review the full project details – checking what technologies they plan to use, and how they plan to combine them.
Enplanner makes the whole planning and development process simpler and quicker – for you and developers in your area.
Call 01926 312159 or email support@enplanner.com to arrange your subscription today, and take the hassle out of approving new developments. For more information about the tool, visit enplanner.com and click ‘Tutorial Videos’ for an online demonstration. The tool is also available for developers. View the Enplanner leaflet for developers.
Enplanner is supported by the Carbon Trust and developed by Encraft in partnership with Coventry, Solihull and Warwickshire area planning officers.
Surveys
We can provide expert advice as well as walk-around surveys to help you plan cost-effective carbon reduction projects.
Once you have requested a survey, an accredited consultant will visit your organisation and work with you to:
- review your energy usage
- identify energy-saving opportunities
- define practical ‘next steps’
Some of our recommendations involve no capital outlay whatsoever. But if any capital expenditure is necessary, our consultant will work with you to calculate the payback period.
Apply for a survey online now and after we receive your application, we’ll give you a call to discuss our eligibility criteria and what we need from you.
Case Studies
Case studies showing how local authorities have worked with the Carbon Trust to achieve cost and carbon savings. Choose a topic below to view relevant case studies:Awareness raising
Blaby District Council, Yorkshire Ambulance Service and Lincoln City Council - Awareness Raising
Teams of champions have been set up to act as advocates and raise awareness for carbon reduction.
Falkirk Council - Awareness Raising
Falkirk Council's focused on the development of an awareness campaign - an inexpensive way of cutting carbon and promoting sustainability.
Voltage management
Colchester Borough Council, Derbyshire County Council and Worcestershire County Council
Councils explain how the limitations of voltage management are as important to understand as the benefits.
Lake District National Park Authority, Salford, Stroud & Norwich Councils
Voltage management can be a quick-win to cut costs and carbon. But there are key elements to consider before going ahead with the installation.
Bath & North East Somerset Council and Angus Council
Councils show that voltage management can be a versatile, inexpensive and effective means of cutting costs and carbon.
Schools engagement
Cambridge County Council
84% of Cambridgeshire County Council’s emissions from buildings were associated with schools. The council targeted carbon reduction in schools by offering a bonus scheme for CO2 reduction.
North Yorkshire County Council
Over 70% of North Yorkshire's emissions from building stock are associated with schools. The Schools Carbon Reduction Officer promotes energy efficiency and behavioural change at their education facilities.
Travel and transport
Stockton on Tees - Driver Training
Building on an existing safe-driving initiative, an Eco Driving Scheme has been launched with little expense but great acclaim from its participants.
Blaby District Council and Yorkshire Ambulance Service - Green Travel
Developing a robust travel plan is becoming more and more important for public sector bodies.
Stockton on Tees Borough Council and Bath & North East Somerset Council
These two local authorities have successfully implemented Green Travel schemes, extending their leadership on carbon reduction to the wider community and the Council's partners.
Automatic meter reading
Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service
The benefits of installing Automatic Meter Reader technology were quickly realised by the project leader at Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service.
Suffolk County Council and Aylesbury Vale District Council
Local authorities have been using new metering technology to empower communities to take responsibility for their carbon emissions.
Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service and Angus Council
Automatic Meter Readers have resulted in noticeable financial and carbon savings and allowed Angus Council to reduce its heating consumption despite a particularly cold winter.
Case study: April 2011
Holistic approach & senior buy-in
Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council
Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council shows that it has the ambition and dedication to realise savings of up to £4 million by 2014.
London Borough of Croydon
Savings from relatively simple cost-effective quick-win projects, such as PC power management, can lead to savings, even if the journey is not always as smooth as anticipated.
Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Service
Through Green Travel and Behaviour Change, Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue are proving that frontline emergency services can have a more positive impact on the environment and save money as a result.
Falkirk, Forest Heath and Luton
A common theme linking successful carbon reduction is high level support for the programme. Without essential backing from executive level sponsors, many plans fail.
Forest Heath District Council - Change management
Change management is key to ensuring long term carbon reduction. High quality buy-in from senior staff right from the beginning will help to ensure success.
Oxford City Council - Carbon Strategy
Working with the Carbon Trust to deliver a first class carbon management programme, they set themselves an ambitious target to cut carbon by 25% in three years followed by a continuous year on year reduction. They are achieving just that.
Other Local Authority case studies
Central Bedfordshire
Traditional street lights are being replaced with LEDs to save energy, as well as reducing the maintenance burden of the highways team.
Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Council
Driven by environmental legislation and the prospect of cost savings, the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea enlisted the Carbon Trust to help create a carbon management plan.
Coventry City Council
A year into its work with the Carbon Trust, Coventry City Council is already putting in to place 34 energy saving projects and has set a target to reduce its annual CO2 emissions.
Aberdeen City Council
The Carbon Trust began working with Aberdeen City Council in June 2003 to implement and test the pilot Local Authority Carbon Management Programme.
Bristol City Council
According to latest figures, Bristol City Council emits 48,395 tonnes of carbon from its premises and services – enough to fill more than 1.16m double-decker buses.
Belfast City Council
Belfast City Council serves an area with a population of 300,000 people and has responsibility for about 200 buildings with an annual energy spend of more than £2m.
Durham County Hall
Durham County Hall had an annual energy bill of almost £180,000, and wanted independent advice to help it develop its energy efficiency policies.