East London schools benefit from more than a decade of green works funded through government scheme
London Borough of Barking and Dagenham completes 95 energy efficiency projects thanks to England Recycling Fund.
East London schools have been at the heart of a 16-year long sustainability initiative led by the local council.
The London Borough of Barking and Dagenham supports a population of more than 218,000 residents, 26% of whom are children aged 0-15. This is understood to be the highest proportion of children supported by any local authority in England.
The council run a total of 62 schools from infant schools through to secondary schools and have pledged to reach net zero borough-wide by 2030.
To support their ambitions, they set up an England Recycling Fund, which has enabled them to complete a total of 95 sustainability projects. Many of these projects focused on green upgrades for schools across the borough, encompassing technologies such as LED lighting, solar panels, insulation, draft proofing and heating control upgrades.
Alongside improving the classroom environment, the works have played an important role in the children’s climate education programme. Projects were used to teach pupils about the importance of energy efficiency measures in our fight against climate change and prompt discussion on the difference these upgrades make to the schools’ carbon emissions.
Dawn Hughes, senior project officer at the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, education department, said: “Through the Salix funding we’ve been able to nibble away at our carbon reduction targets whilst also involving schools with Eco Schools activities, working on all aspects of sustainability and improving the school environment.”
Through the Salix funding we’ve been able to nibble away at our carbon reduction targets whilst also involving schools with Eco Schools activities, working on all aspects of sustainability and improving the school environment.
Originally set up in 2008, the council’s England Recycling Fund has supported projects worth a total loan value of £1,886,336. When combined, these projects are expected to save the council £490,833 in energy bills and 2,254 tonnes of carbon emissions annually.
School-based projects completed through the scheme include a recent solar installation at Becontree Primary. As a part of the project, renewable energy providers Ameresco led an assembly during the school’s science, technology, engineering and mathematics week to teach the children about the role of renewable energy and how this supports our fight against the climate crisis.
Dawn added: “The talk led by Ameresco was aimed at years 3 to 6 students (aged 7 to 11), with a focus on inspiring the children about sustainable energy and climate change, highlighting the positive impact of the transformation brought about by the solar panel installation at their school.”
The council estimates that the solar project at Becontree Primary should save the school more than £11,000 or 26% of their annual energy bills and 11.15 tonnes of carbon emissions every year.
Patrick Lane, programme coordinator at Salix, said: “With the support of their Recycling Fund, Barking and Dagenham has made some great progress against their net zero targets.
“The works undertaken, particularly in the schools, have ensured that the buildings are not only more sustainable, but also helped to educate the future generation of climate activists.”
Despite navigating a particularly challenging funding environment, the council are keen to maintain momentum against their net zero targets. To support this, their education department self-funds energy efficiency measures from its annual capital allocation.
To supplement the progress made, thanks to works funded through their Recycling Fund, the council also received funding through Phase 1 of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme. This project focused on connecting some of the council’s buildings to the existing district heating network to support the decarbonisation of heat.
The works undertaken, particularly in the schools, have ensured that the buildings are not only more sustainable, but also helped to educate the future generation of climate activists.
About the England Recycling Fund
The England Recycling Fund is a loan-based, ring-fenced fund, created with capital provided on behalf of the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero through Salix, and matched by the public sector organisation. It encourages organisations to re-invest financial savings that result from projects into further decarbonisation and energy efficiency projects, thus operating in a cyclic “recycled” manner.
The scheme has been closed to new applications since 2010. However, since that time we have continued to support organisations with open funds to complete thousands of projects worth more than £267 million through the scheme.
The average fund has been recycled more than three times, and, when combined, our recycling fund projects save over 296,000 tonnes of carbon emissions every single year.
The fund is closing at the end of the 2024/25 financial year, with any projects funded through the scheme required to complete by 31 March 2025.
