Mobilising quickly to reduce carbon emissions and energy bills
Decarbonisation & energy
Ladybridge High School decarbonisation
Through a long-term partnership with Clear Futures, Bolton Council benefits from a quick, efficient route to procure infrastructure projects, with a special focus on sustainability. With access to expertise in energy retrofits, the council has made significant reductions to carbon emissions and energy bills at Ladybridge High School – learn more below.
268 t CO₂e
carbon savings p.a.
£38,000
operational energy savings p.a.
£1.4m
PSDS funding secured
Energy challenges of an ageing estate
Ladybridge High School in Bolton was built in the 1970’s, and with an on-site leisure centre and educational farm, had complex and high energy requirements. It was affected by inefficiencies such as separate controls in different locations, high-energy lighting and single-glazed windows.
Mobilising quickly to implement improvements
Robertson Facilities Management (RFM) is a pre-procured Clear Futures national supply chain partner, giving Bolton Council easy access to deliver the project at speed. The Council could quickly engage the RFM to carry out energy audits and make a funding application. Once funding was secured, RFM could be swiftly instructed to deliver the decarbonisation improvements. Drawing on vast experience of similar work across the North West, RFM applied their understanding of the technologies and local supply chain partners to deliver the project efficiently, and with minimal disruption in the live school / leisure centre environment.
Securing decarbonisation funding for the Council
RFM carried out energy audits using their innovative energy tool across the site, identifying the most beneficial decarbonisation measures and solutions to reduce operational energy consumption and carbon output. These were included in a Public Sector Decarbonisation Fund (PSDS) application, made on behalf of Bolton Council, which successfully unlocked £1.4m of funding to deliver the decarbonisation project.
£10.4m secured for carbon zero projects in Greater Manchester
Partner: Bolton Council, Tameside Council, Stockport Council
Project value: £10.4m
Completion: June 2022
When the first wave of Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS) funding was announced in 2020, Clear Futures partnered with three Greater Manchester local authorities – Bolton, Stockport and Tameside – who needed support to develop strong grant applications.
The UK Government and BEIS (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy) announced the first phase of the PSDS funding in October 2020, giving UK public sector bodies the opportunity to bid for grants from a £1bn funding pot. The scheme provided a key opportunity to unlock public sector decarbonisation projects at a time when public capital was under pressure due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The use of funding was specific: to deliver capital energy efficiency and heat decarbonisation projects within public sector non-domestic buildings, providing key stimulus to the low carbon economy and delivering significant savings across the UK public estate.
Our work resulted in significant savings for the public sector in terms of operational costs, freeing up capital for other priority issues, and a key step change towards meeting net zero carbon targets:
Energy audits
Strategic support services
Funding application support
Design and engineering
Project management
Cost management
£10.4m
funding secured
36
priority buildings for upgrade works
1,296.6
tonnes CO2e savings per year
£150,367
financial savings per year
Meeting tight PSDS deadlines
Each application had to evidence the impact of proposed decarbonisation measures and programmes for delivery – within the set timescale of nine months from any grant being awarded
For local authorities at the beginning of their roadmap to net zero, this presented a real challenge to understand the current state of their existing estate and how to deliver ‘no regrets’ decarbonisation projects.
All three applications were submitted on time, with feasibility works completed in eight weeks. The 36 projects identified:
Supported internal net zero targets.
Ensured no increase in operational costs arising from a switch from gas to electricity.
Could be delivered to the PSDS deadline.
Further key outcomes included:
Increased understanding within council teams of built estate carbon output and energy efficiency.
Project teams prepared for accelerated delivery in advance of funding awards through support including design, procurement, initial project plans, risk registers, supply chain engagement, planning and site capacity assessments.
Supported growth of green skills, job opportunities and local supply chains.
Ambitious net zero strategies and roadmaps developed, with scope for wider decarbonisation and green infrastructure projects.
