Investing in sustainable and renewable energy sources

West Northamptonshire Council has received £73,000 to develop an electric vehicle strategy and research new innovations which will see new technology rolled out across the area.

WNC has committed to becoming net zero in its carbon emissions by 2030 with plans to invest in sustainable and renewable energy sources.

At the Cabinet meeting on Monday, 13 February, WNC presented its baseline emissions report for 2021-22; taking a step forward in meeting the sustainability goal to be net zero by 2030. This data will provide the catalyst for driving forward and implementing changes to reach this goal.

A key example of how this will be achieved is by working with the Council’s key partners that help deliver vital services, to invest in new technologies that will better support the sustainability agenda. WNC and Kier, which manages the highways network in West Northants with the Council, are working closely together to consider how current vehicles can be replaced with electric or ultra-low emission vehicles to ensure a better environmental impact as well as are cost-effective and able to deliver the work needed.

A great example of this is being delivered within our waste services teams, many of our contractors already use electric vehicles to collect waste from our residents and businesses, as well as keep West Northamptonshire clean through our street cleansing services.

Sustainability is high on the agenda for us as a Council, with work already underway to make West Northants a sustainable place to live.

We are embarking on a bold new approach to make West Northamptonshire a more sustainable place to live and work. Steps that the council is taking are many and varied, from having removed single use cups in our offices, to increased solar energy across the area.

We have recently received the good news that WNC has been awarded £73,000 to develop an innovative electric vehicle strategy for West Northants. As part of this work, we will be applying for external funding to set up a team that will look at implementing the strategy and install EV infrastructure in our car parks and on street.

To further support this, we will be working closely with our partners across our services to consider how we can introduce electric vehicles and sustainable energy sources.Cllr Jonathan Nunn, Leader of West Northamptonshire Council

In addition to the £73,000 funding towards developing an electric vehicle strategy, WNC has also been awarded £7 million to invest in Daventry Leisure Centre, Moulton Leisure Centre, Brackley Leisure Centre, and Towcester Centre. This funding will be invested to deliver heat decarbonisation and improved energy efficiency following WNC’s successful application to the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme phase 3b.

Over the next 12 months, WNC will be working with Northampton Partnership Homes to review and procure a number of electric vans and consider how it can continue to expand the number of electric vehicles in future.

This work is further supported by partnership work between WNC and NPH to carry out a feasibility study for a sustainable heat network for Northampton and Rothersthorpe Village. WNC and NPH have been awarded £112k as part of the Heat Network Delivery Unit phase 12 funding. Public health and NPH are match funding the study in a bid to help alleviate fuel poverty by designing a solution to deliver lower-cost and low-carbon heat to homes and to commercial properties.

To view the emissions report, find out more about Sustainable West Northants and make your sustainability pledge and find out more about how to get involved, visit the Sustainable West Northants website.