Changing the way we work

Alongside doing projects focused on reducing environmental impacts, we also want to embed a consideration and awareness of the environment into the whole council.

This means creating a culture where environmental considerations are naturally considered within projects and decision making that staff are involved with.

This includes things like how staff travel to work, how buildings are managed, the policies and strategies we write and more.

This change will take time, but we are introducing support and training to help this happen, including:

• Producing training for staff on environmental awareness, highlighting how they can reduce their environmental impact in their work and personal lives.


• Provide opportunities and incentives for staff to travel to and from work using sustainable travel methods. This includes providing discounts for public transport, access to electric pool bikes and more recently an electric car.


• Integrate consideration of the risks emerging from climate change into our risk management processes. A climate risk assessment is currently being produced in co-ordination with council services to understand these.


• Understanding the environmental impacts of the outdoor events taking place in council owned spaces and how these can be reduced.
  
  We are participating in a pilot project to update our events policy to reflect sustainability considerations.
  
  We are also trialling an environmental assessment tool with event organisers. The tool includes a series of questions to understand what event organisers are already doing to reduce their environmental impacts and understand the barriers they face in doing more.


• Ask companies that we buy goods or services from to demonstrate their commitment to reducing their emissions and environmental impacts. This is being asked as a question in our bidder forms for contracts above a £50,000 threshold.


• Introducing environmental considerations into services at our museums. This includes stocking locally produced and plastic free products in gift shops and reusing boards and equipment from past exhibitions in current ones.