Happy new year to you all!
2021 was a fantastic year for climate action in West Berkshire. Among many other projects, we announced our solar farm proposal, launched our Electric Vehicle charge points scheme, enjoyed the blooming wildflowers project, and even showcased our best local green businesses at Christmas. We published our Environment Strategy Delivery Plan as well as our first annual report on our progress, and invested in increasing the size of our Environment Delivery Team.
It was inspirational to have COP26 taking place in the UK last year, with so many other councils and organisations up and down the country all playing their part to tackle climate change. Looking ahead, this year we will be supporting projects from our Natural Solutions Delivery Partnership focusing on community-led landscape restoration and carbon capture, as well as expanding our public electric vehicle charge point scheme across the district. We are also aiming to progress our proposed solar farm through the planning stages, as well as other exciting projects. We know 2022 will be just as busy for our teams who are enthusiastically working on delivering our challenging Environment Strategy targets.
We hope you continue to find our monthly updates useful and interesting and can maybe share with others so they can sign up to receive them as well.
Cllr Steve Ardagh-Walter (Executive Member for Environment)
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West Berkshire residents are being invited to sign up for the spring West Berkshire Collective Energy Switch to see if they can save money on their energy bills and go green.
The scheme runs in partnership with iChoosr. Big Community Switch offers a no obligation collective energy switching scheme which gives people the opportunity to group together and pay less for their energy, as well as switching to renewable energy tariffs.
Due to the persistently rising wholesale prices across the energy market, please note that you may be advised not to switch tariffs.
Update on the energy market – why are my energy bills rising?
The energy market has seen a consistent rise in wholesale prices which have hit an all-time high. The rise in energy prices are due to:
- Cold winter in Europe last year which increased the pressure on resources
- Worldwide demand on gas and energy supplies
As a result, gas prices will continue to rise for everyone across the energy market and it has been advised by Ofgem that prices will not drop soon.
Ofgem set a price cap which is the maximum price a supplier can charge customers on a standard variable tariff. The price will be announced in February to reflect the level that will apply from April-September. It is expected that there will be an increase in the price cap and as a result, your energy supplier will be able to increase your bills up to the maximum price.
Advice from Ichoosr
If you are on a Standard Variable Tariff - the advice given would be to stay on this tariff. Your energy supplier may offer you a fixed tariff which you might consider if it is cheaper than your current tariff.
If you are on a Fixed Tariff - the advice given would be to stay on this tariff if your tariff was fixed before the recent rises in the energy market.
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Businesses in West Berkshire can now apply for grants from a new scheme called the Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG) Challenge Fund, which aims to support environmentally friendly economic recovery and growth. Whether you are a sole trader or a limited company, you can apply for grants ranging from £5,000 to £25,000. The funding will be paid upfront towards projects that will help your business to recover and grow in an environmentally friendly way.
We’re excited to see innovative, high-impact proposals from businesses and we have put together a useful guidance document with examples of eligible projects under the “green growth” category. Some examples include:
- Installation of renewable or low/zero carbon technology (e.g. photovoltaics/air source heat pump)
- Improved building insulation
- Installation of an energy-efficient lighting system
- Installation of an electric vehicle charging point
- Upgraded heating/cooling system
- Installation of cycle storage facilities
Businesses must submit a full proposal in line with the Council’s eligibility criteria and are invited to apply until 13 February 2022. This will be followed by a review and payment period in March 2022.
Come and talk to us about waste reduction and recycling!
Have you got questions about your waste and recycling collections or just want some tips on waste reduction. Come down to Newbury Library on 3 February 2022 between 10am - 2pm where a member of the team will be available to answer your questions and offer advice on your waste and recycling queries.
Starting next month there will be changes to bin collections days across the district for many of our residents.
The changes, which take effect from Monday 7 February, will apply to our recycling, rubbish (black bin), food and garden waste collections. We’re making these changes to help us enhance the efficiency of our collection rounds and to improve our resilience.
This week all households will begin receiving information about their new collection day in the post. For most households this will be in the form of a postcard including a calendar showing your collection dates up until the end of July 2022. You will also be able to view your new collection date here: www.westberks.gov.uk/binday
Cllr Steve Ardagh-Walter, our Executive Member for the Environment, said
“The changes to the collection rounds will enable us to become more resilient against future challenges. We have learnt over the past few years how valued our services are amongst our residents and we have come up with a system to further improve this service. The route changes will enable better use of the available vehicles and crews by focussing them in defined zones during collection days rather than being spread thinly across the district. I would like to thank residents in advance for their patience and continued support during this transition period.”
Please note that apart from the collection day revision, no other changes are being proposed at this time.
On the two Saturdays before Christmas (11 and 18 December 2021) free bus travel was made available for users. This was well received by local operators, and builds on the partnership being established between the Council and the bus operators, as they look to encourage a growth in bus patronage across West Berkshire. The Council has also received other positive feedback about this initiative.
The advertising primarily focused on travel to Newbury, with passengers able to use Reading Buses Jet Black 1 and Newbury & District services going to and from Newbury. Reading, Andover and Basingstoke were also highlighted as destinations to travel to by public bus, along with the other operators Thames Travel and Stagecoach.
This initiative does appear to have encouraged increased bus use, with numbers travelling on the first Saturday matching the equivalent day in 2019. Similar numbers also travelled on the final Saturday. Whilst it is too early to assess whether this has encouraged any long term growth in bus use, it is highly likely that further free travel will be offered in the future to support the Council’s Environment Strategy, and to help with recovery by encouraging passenger numbers back up to pre-pandemic levels.
If you wish find out more about local buses in West Berkshire, further information can be found here.
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We are pleased to announce that planning applications have been submitted for three more flood protection schemes in Thatcham near to Bowling Green Road, Heath Lane and Siege Cross off Floral Way.
These projects are part of an ongoing programme to protect Thatcham following the severe flooding that occurred in 2007. At that time, Thatcham suffered widespread surface water flooding affecting at least 1,100 houses, causing severe hardship and economic losses for both residents and local businesses.
The flood defences have been designed to provide a level of protection up to a 1 in 100 year storm, and a further 40% allowance has been added to take into account future climate change.
We would welcome your comments on the proposals. Details can be found on the council’s planning portal, at planning application numbers 21/03079/COMIND, 21/03135/COMIND and 21/03154/FUL.
  Dr Susan Millington
Dr Susan Millington is the founder and driving force behind the Lockdown Woods project. During the Covid lockdowns she encouraged local people to keep and nurture saplings in their garden, which would be planted to commemorate individuals who lost their lives from Covid, and as a lasting testament to the dedication of NHS staff and the wider community.
Susan worked with West Berkshire Council, Newbury Town Council and the Town and Manor of Hungerford to identify three separate areas where more than 1,500 young saplings were planted, including donated trees from the Woodland Trust.
The judging panel felt that this nomination really stood out and was able to demonstrate both positive environmental and health and wellbeing benefits. Susan was able to mobilise others to be involved, showed commitment over a sustained period and reached all generations. It was a considerable project and Susan is a worthy winner.
The Community Champion Awards are an opportunity to say thank you to people who have done something special for their local community and honours those individuals and community groups who have gone above and beyond to support residents throughout West Berkshire this year.
GREENING SUN Community meeting - 16 February 7pm, Sulhamstead Village Hall
The Greening Campaign is a countrywide initiative to encourage households to reduce their carbon footprint using some simple steps. Greening SUN is the local Community Group for Sulhamstead and Ufton Nervet. Together we can make a difference!
If you can’t wait to join the conversation, go to our facebook page @SUN Greening campaign
Read more about Greening SUN and the meeting here.
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West Berkshire Council is supporting and encouraging our Parish and Town Councils to take climate action with their residents. If you are interested in your local community joining the Greening Campaign, please contact your parish council and Environment@westberks.gov.uk
Cycle skills training
With spring just around the corner, we have some courses starting very soon to help kids get out and about on their bikes and build up their confidence.
Anyone in Year 7 or 9 who has completed Bikeability Level 2 and wants to develop their cycling skills even further can sign up to complete Level Three this half-term.
Available during February half term, anyone who is in Year 7 or 8 and has completed Bikeability Level 2 can now sign up to Level 3 to develop their cycling skills even further.
Another event, which starts in April, is Cyclomaniacs. This is ideal for children aged 9-12 to come and join the Cyclomaniacs for 3 hrs of fun! Find out more about the Cyclomaniacs scheme here.
Places are available but limited. For more information and to secure your place please email: activetravel@westberks.gov.uk.
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