What we’re doing to make our buildings sustainable

Making improvements to our buildings across our three campuses is one of the most important ways we can reduce our carbon emissions. As part of our Sustainability Sub-Strategy consultation, you had lots of suggestions for things we could do to improve our estates and how we use them. We have been taking on board your feedback and wanted to update you with information on what’s available and what we have planned.

Lighting

You said:

Increase LED lighting and automation of lighting.

We offer:

We are continually developing the measures we have in place to be more energy efficient and use less energy; to date, 87% of our lighting on campus has been upgraded to LED (or equivalent).

We’re working on:

We will continue to replace old lighting with LED / low energy lighting and explore opportunities for more innovative ways to use lighting in offices and teaching spaces.

Energy

You said:

Improve building insulation.

We offer:

Improving the fabric of our buildings is a key priority for energy efficiency, and this is being addressed as part of the long-term maintenance plan. Roofs are due to be renovated on our 1960s estate at Colchester in conjunction with plans to install additional solar panels.

We’re working on: We are exploring how we can further work to the ‘fabric first’ principle (prioritising the fabric of a building in renovations and retrofitting) to improve thermal efficiency and manage the need for heating in winter and cooling in summer.

You said:

To use renewable energy sources.

We offer:

Across our Colchester Campus we have over 2,000 solar panels generating 2.5% of our electricity needs - or enough electricity to power 300 homes. We have solar panels on buildings across the site including our:

• Multi Deck Car Park
• Sports Centre
• Essex Sport Arena
• Network Building
• Albert Sloman Library
• Essex Business School 
• Parkside A
• Parkside B
• Parkside
• Innovation Centre

We’re working on:

We will increase our use of renewable energy generation from a 2019 baseline to reduce reliance on the grid, reduce our carbon emissions and reduce our spend on electricity, while continuing to source 100% of the electricity we do purchase from green tariffs. A project is under way to install further solar panels at Colchester, and by 2026 25% of our electricity will be generated through renewable sources.

Construction

You said:

New construction to be sustainable

We offer:

Recent projects such as the STEM, Innovation Centre and growth of the Knowledge Gateway have adhered to environmental regulations on building requirements, including BREEAM and ‘Part L’ of local compliance. Funds are also ring-fenced as part of these projects to develop amenities such as cycle parking (watch this space for more updates on this!)

We’re working on:

Through the SSS we have committed to ensuring new buildings will be designed to minimise carbon impacts, as well as contributing to a range of priority sustainability benefits – this includes electric-only buildings to move away from gas, water efficiency and sustainable construction materials. Crucially, we are focused on better use of the spaces we already have, rather than building new whenever appropriate.

Our commitment for ongoing change

We’re proud of our work so far to make our buildings more sustainable.  We know that there is always more to do, and we are always exploring opportunities. We are on a journey of improvement and development; there are many challenges ahead, but also a lot of exciting opportunities. To learn more about our ambitions and progress, visit the sustainability webpages. We will be providing updates on our response to your feedback to the consultation in a series of blogs – please check back regularly to learn more.