Sustainable Energy
The Beacon Scheme
The Beacon Council scheme recognises good practice in local government. In 2005-2006 High Peak Borough Council was awarded Beacon Status for ‘Sustainable Energy’.
Sustainable Energy
Sustainable Energy is defined as 'energy that can be produced economically and safely for all time without impacting the environment and well-being of future generations'.
High Peak Borough Council's achievements
- We were one of the first 12 Local Authorities to achieve the Eco-Management & Audit Scheme (EMAS) accreditation. This process involved setting a range of environmental objectives to challenge the council to improve environmental performance.
- We host the Nottinghamshire & Derbyshire Energy Efficiency Advice Centre.
- We have achieved Local Government Agency Pathfinder status for our Business Transport Project bringing in an extra £8,150. The title of this project is 'Increasing access to rural industrial estates in High Peak, Derbyshire'.
- Our council housing has been improved bringing it into the top 25% of public housing stock for energy efficiency.
- Carbon emissions from council offices and leisure centres fell by 3.5% in 2006/2007 compared with the previous year.
- We took part in a scheme, Community Action for Energy in the voluntary sector, which provided information to community and voluntary groups to promote energy efficiency in the wider community.
- We have offered free energy saving advice for our suppliers and contractors in order to improve the efficiency of our supply chain.
- We have secured over £200,000 for energy projects since 2003.
How has Beacon helped us improve service delivery?
We have been awarded £67,000 from the Improvement & Development Agency (IDEA) to carry out our Beacon activities which include hosting an open day and giving one to one mentoring to other local authorities. This has given us the opportunity to see what other authorities are achieving and to learn from their experience.
During 2006-2007 the Council was awarded a grant to support the development of a Sustainable Energy Benchmark and Toolkit for Local Authorities.
We have developed an Environmental Management System toolkit for local authorities to guide the coordinator through the process. The CD Rom toolkit is structured around ISO14001 and is accompanied by a handbook.
If you would like more information please ring Bill Purvis on 0845 129 77 77 / 01298 28400 ext 4480.
Useful Resources
