In most schools there is significant potential to save money whilst reducing environmental impact simply by managing energy and water more efficiently. Typically schools spend three times as much on energy as they do on books, which works out at about 3.5% of their overall budgets.
Schools account for over 50% of Richmond Council’s carbon emissions arising from buildings and around 15% of carbon emissions in the public sector in the UK. The Carbon Trust states that a 20% reduction in school energy consumption can easily be achieved by employing simple measures at minimal cost, such as improved lighting and insulation. The Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) is a carbon trading scheme which will charge large organisations £12 per tonne of CO2 they emit. This cost will increase to a floor price of £16/ tonne in 2013 and £20/tonne by 2020. Although Richmond Council will purchase these initial allowances, the cost of purchasing allowances for schools will be top sliced from the central schools budget. Therefore, there is no better time to start investing in energy efficiency.
There is lots of help out there to help you tap into this potential. The Go Green Website contains a wealth of information to get you started or look at the useful links below for support offered by other organisations. The Sustainability Unit can also assist you in a number of ways, including:
If you have any questions in relation to energy and water, whether it be about financing projects or setting up a green team, please do not hesitate to get in contact for further information. Please contact: sustainability@richmond.gov.uk or telephone: 020 8891 7302.
Automated Meter Readers (AMRs) take a meter reading every half an hour to give you 48 readings a day. This will show you not just how much energy you are using but when you are using it, therefore helping you identify energy wastage and save money on your bills. Not only will they provide accurate energy consumption information for carbon reporting, but it will feed directly into the billing process, meaning you only pay for what you use. AMR data can also be used in the curriculum and should be shared with your premises committee and senior management team.
See the instruction guide
(pdf, 557KB) for step by step guidance on how to use the AMR template tool and the several useful graphs that are also available via the 'on demand' tab of the saverenergyonline website.
To take a manual meter reading of your electricity AMR use this guide(pdf, 53KB).
If you need a password reminder or would like to arrange a meeting to discuss your data, contact: sustainability@richmond.gov.uk or telephone: 020 8891 7302.
Briefing paper for schools(pdf, 103KB)
Here are some good links for further information from other organisations in relation to energy and water management.
