How we can drive a greener NHS together
Climate change and the way we interact with our environment has a significant impact on our health. The UK government has recently declared a climate emergency and since the NHS is responsible for 5% of the UK’s carbon footprint, the NHS Long Term Plan outlines the importance of becoming more sustainable.
With over 3000 properties in our portfolio - that's 10% of the NHS estate - NHS Property Services is in prime position to lead the way in reaching net zero carbon by reducing the negative environmental impact of our buildings and creating awareness amongst our people and the occupiers of our buildings to help us do this.
How are we decarbonising the NHS estate?
In early 2021, Cameron Hawkins, Head of Energy and Environment at NHSPS spoke to HefmA Pulse about our current and future plans to decarbonise the NHS estate, including:
- Moving to renewable electricity
- LED lighting upgrades across our portfolio
- Creating an electric vehicle strategy
- The importance of funding and data
How can you help?
To meet the UK Government’s net zero carbon goals, we need to work jointly with our customers to reduce energy consumption in each building.
You can help reduce your impact by:
- Turning off lights and equipment when not in use and at the end of the day
- Closing windows when heating or cooling a room
- Closing window coverings at night to keep room temperature stable
- Ensuring that you don't have heating and cooling simultaneously and that they are set to comfortable levels
- Implementing a building/area shut down procedure so everything is turned off at the end of the day
- Report any issues surrounding broken heating and cooling equipment and dripping taps to our FM Helpdesk
To find out more about your buildings energy performance or to get involved in energy efficiency please contact utilities@property.nhs.uk.
Guides to waste management
We've put together some guidance to help you separate waste at your site appropriately. The guidance will help you understand what type of non-clinical waste should go into the different recycling bins and what type of clinical waste should go into the different colours of containers and bags.
100% Renewable Electricity Certificate
Download and display the Renewable Electricity Certificate from British Gas. This certifies that the electricity we are supplied with is backed by renewable generation Guarantee of Origin certificates.
Get a copy of your Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)
An EPC gives a property an energy efficiency rating from A (most efficient) to G (least efficient) on how it should be performing and is valid for 10 years. A copy of the EPC for your building can be made available upon request.
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