Our Progress To-date
In 2017 the college achieved ISO14001:2015 and we continue to work towards maintaining ISO14001 accreditation for our Environmental Management System. We continue to carry out internal audits of the college environmental practices. To-date we have:
- Implemented strategies to reduce energy use
- Ensured recycling signage is in every building
- Set and monitored targets to reduce waste on campus by 50-75%
- Prioritised renewable energy across the estate
- Applied and won new Salix funds to improve energy efficiency
- All laptop trollies have internal timers that are configured to charge laptops periodically throughout the day.
Our future actions
Whilst we continue to grow the college, we continue to aim towards reducing our utility usage.
We are changing all our lighting across our sites to LED which is more energy efficient and requires less energy use. We use energy management systems with sensors to ensure our buildings operate in the most efficient way possible for instance all computers switch off automatically at 10pm every night. We will also deliver the following:
- Continue to apply for new Salix funds to improve energy efficiency following two successful bids
- Put power policies in place that strike a balance between power consumption and performance
- We have reduced the number of on-site servers from 80 (2017) to 20 (2023) and will continue this rationalisation
- We aim to replace 20% of our computer estate on an annual basis with hardware optimised for reduced power consumption.
We will also continue to:
- Enhance our indoor environment throughout by replacing windows to reduce solar gain and improved natural ventilation
- We will continue to optimise operational and maintenance practices through improved building management systems and ensure site closures take place during holidays
- Continue to monitor & report on our carbon emissions, conducting green audits annually
- Identify funding streams for ongoing investment in the estate such as further capital projects, further Salix rounds to formalise decarbonisation plans, T Level Waves, FECTF building refurbishments.
