Westmorland and Furness Council was awarded £350,000 to carry out a major decarbonisation assessment across schools for which the council has responsibility. This followed the successful application for a Low Carbon Skills Fund (LCSF) grant from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.
The initial stage of the review has been completed, following extensive assessments from specialists who gathered all relevant information to facilitate the next stage of the project. This will involve individual heat decarbonisation plans and building condition surveys being produced for each school.
The outcome of these reports will determine the scope of works required, investigate where changes and improvements could be made to increase the green credentials of buildings and how budget savings could be achieved on school energy costs.
The initial grant, delivered by Salix, has enabled these energy efficiency and usage studies to be done, which will help the council to apply for further funding to carry out the proposed decarbonisation upgrades, supporting the council’s journey to becoming net zero by 2037.
The final reports will focus on how existing heating systems could be replaced with updated, lower-carbon electrical alternatives and outline proposals for building improvements. These improvements include enhanced insulation and renewable energy options to help schools run more efficiently and reduce costs.
Cllr Andrew Jarvis, Westmorland and Furness Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance, said:
“Our annual budget for school maintenance during 2025/26 is £5.046m. We need to spend this in the best way to ensure that our 69 schools provide a high standard of accommodation and to do this in a way that is sustainable and energy efficient.”
“These heat decarbonisation and condition surveys will inform our future planning and funding applications, to improve our portfolio of buildings and reduce the amount of carbon emitted from them.”
Salix director of public sector decarbonisation Ian Rodger said:
"It’s really important that we work together to decarbonise schools, not only for educational reasons but for the environment too.”
“In reducing a school's carbon footprint, it benefits the environment as well as the whole community.”
“Well done to Westmorland and Furness Council on this work.”