The latest round of bidding for the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme opened yesterday which means public buildings across the UK, such as schools and hospitals, could be entitled to a share of £230m to help reduce energy use and cut carbon emissions.
The scheme, which was first launched three years ago, has already allocated more than £2bn in funding to around 1,000 public sector organisations in England and the application process is now once again open.
The funding is largely used to support low-carbon energy upgrades such as the installation of heat pumps and solar panels. Some institutions have also elected to use their cut of the funding to improve their insulation and to invest in low-energy lighting.
The launch of the latest stage of the scheme comes just a few weeks after Rishi Sunak reaffirmed his commitment to reaching net zero by 2050 despite going back on several environmental policies.
Among the policy changes included a delay on the ban on new petrol and diesel cars by five years and the scrapping of a policy that ensured landlords were required to make their properties energy-efficient.
The Prime Minister said that he is committed to taking a “more pragmatic, proportionate, and realistic approach” which makes the renewal of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme more than timely.
The success of the scheme so far
At current, the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme has been a success in that it has helped to bring the UK closer to net zero. According to the government, decarbonising the public sector is “expected to save the public sector an estimated £650m per year on average” until 2037.
The government have also stated that the scheme is helping, and will continue to help, with their commitment to reducing emissions from public sector buildings by 75% by 2037, when compared to figures from 2017.
Some of the biggest success stories to date are as follows:
- University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust have installed a new air source heat pump and new solar panels at the Hospital of St Cross in Rugby. This has saved the trust nearly £55,000 on their yearly energy bill.
- Staffordshire Country Council have installed heat pumps and solar panels at a refurbished primary school called the Kingston Centre. The school is also due to receive LED lighting, double glazing, roof insulation and pipework insulation which will save them around £80,000 each year.
- Upper Norwood Library and the Waterloo Action Community Centre in Lambeth have both had heat pumps, LED lighting, double glazing and building energy management systems installed. This has saved the local council in Lambeth £5,200 annually.
Responses
To commemorate the re-opening of the scheme, the Minister for Energy Efficiency and Green Finance, Lord Callanan, released a statement to praise its successes so far and to look ahead to the future. He said:
“We are a world leader when it comes to reducing carbon emissions – and for us to reach our goal of net zero by 2050, we want to help public bodies like schools and hospitals do their bit.
“We’ve made fantastic progress so far, helping more than 1,000 schools, hospitals and leisure centres. Today’s funding will now help even more organisations across England bring their bills down, while also cutting their emissions.”
The next phase of the scheme is set to be delivered by Salix, a non-departmental public body. Their Director of Programme, Ian Rodger, said:
“Salix is delighted to be delivering the next phase of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme to support public sector bodies in their net zero transformation journey. The scheme is empowering organisations across England to make significant reductions in their carbon footprint from heating public buildings.
“The huge enthusiasm for the scheme shows how much public sector bodies care about their carbon emissions and Salix is proud to be able to support them with finance and technical support to achieve their ambitions.”
Final thought
Despite claims that Rishi Sunak and this Conservative government were turning their backs on net zero and environmental policy, the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme is certainly one that can only result in lower emissions for public sector institutions.
The scheme has already shown significant success in helping public sector organisations reduce their energy bills and carbon footprint. With the latest round of funding, more institutions will now have the opportunity to make crucial upgrades to their energy systems, such as installing heat pumps and solar panels.
Curia’s Energy Sustainability Commission
The Energy Sustainability Commission will investigate the different renewable energy sources available and examine how each source can complement the UK’s total energy network. Bringing together leaders from across the energy sector it will develop recommendations that support the implementation of the Government’s Net Zero and other strategies.