Public buildings across England will cut their use of expensive fossil fuels and save millions of pounds on bills, thanks to £553 million in government funding.
Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust is receiving more than £70 million to decarbonise Queens Medical Centre.
Hospitals, schools, libraries, museums and leisure centres across England are among hundreds of public buildings that will cut their use of expensive fossil fuels and save millions of pounds on bills, thanks to £553 million in government funding for affordable, low carbon heating and energy efficiency upgrades.
These upgraded heating systems, powered by cleaner, cheaper, renewable energy, will reduce the use of fossil fuels exposed to volatile global energy prices, support thousands of jobs, and also save taxpayers money as these measures will ensure public buildings are cheaper to heat. Local authorities, public bodies and taxpayers are expected to save an average of £650 million per year on energy bills over the next 15 years.
Funding through the government’s Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme will see clean, efficient heat pumps installed and energy efficiency upgrades (such as insulation) fitted in 160 public sector organisations such as Birmingham Children’s Hospital, Manchester Fire and Rescue and historic venues at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
Upgrades are already underway with grants awarded to 381 public sector organisations across England under first two phases of the Government’s scheme, with Phase 1 alone supporting up to 30,000 clean jobs in the clean heating and energy efficiency sectors.
The first round of funding allocated through Phase 3 of the government’s Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme will provide grants to 160 public sector organisations across the country to install 217 clean heat and energy efficiency projects.
The funding is part of the £6.6 billion the Government is investing this parliament to cut fossil fuel use and emissions from buildings, whilst creating high wage, high skill jobs. In addition to the funding allocated to the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, over £2 billion is aimed specifically at lower-income households and saving people money on their energy bills.
The Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme supports the aim of reducing emissions from public sector buildings by 75%, compared to 2017 levels, by 2037. Today’s funding is the first part of an overall £1.425 billion due to be allocated through Phase 3 over three years until 2025.
There will be multiple opportunities for the public sector to secure funding through Phase 3 of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme. Guidance on how to apply for the next round of applications, Phase 3b, will be published in July, with the application window planned to open for applications in September.
