Agenda item

The Climate Change Manager presented the Climate Change Strategy 2026 to 2031. In doing so, the following was highlighted:

·       The Climate Change Strategy 2026 to 2031 replaced the previously approved Strategy. The new Strategy focused on priority themes where the Council had direct control or significant influence such as:

·       The Strategy would be embedded in the Council’s performance framework with annual reporting to Cabinet and Council. Members were reminded that Climate Change implications were already included in all Committee reports.

·       In order to ensure the Strategy moved from high-level ambition to operational reality, Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound (SMART) actions and milestones would be included directly in the relevant Service Business Plans. It was hoped that this would ensure that Assistant Directors and Service Managers maintained full ownership over the delivery methods required to meet the Climate Change Strategy outcomes.

·       The Climate Change Manager would act as the central corporate auditor, responsible for the annual monitoring and reporting of these milestones to Cabinet and Council. Members noted that although the Climate Change Manager would be the auditor, it was the responsibility of all Service areas to embed and take ownership of policies and processes in respect of Climate Change within their Service Area.

·       Partnerships would be instrumental in delivering the Strategy. There would be continued collaboration with Worcestershire County Council, Everyone Active, BDHT/Registered Providers, Act On Energy, Midland Net Zero Hub, Worcestershire Regulatory Services, in order to maximise delivery capacity and funding leverage.

·       There were some key operational programmes that would be undertaken which included:

·       PV at Bromsgrove Sport and Leisure Centre

·       Lighting upgrades across the Council’s estate

·       Warm Homes retrofit

·       Expansion of EV charging

·       Preparation for separate weekly food waste collections

·       Biodiversity improvements

·       The Strategy would be delivered through a mix of existing revenue budgets, invest?to?save business cases, Capital Programme bids, and external funding as required by service areas.

·       Within the context of Local Governement Reorganisation (LGR), this was an adaptable Strategy which had been prepared and could be passed over to the new Authority in whatever structure was adopted.

·       An annual report would be provided to ascertain the status of milestones and actions within the Strategy.

Members welcomed the ambitious Strategy and requested that areas of commonality between neighbouring Districts be considered during the implementation of the Climate Change Strategy 2026 to 2031 particularly in light of LGR.

It was raised that the previous Carbon Reduction Action Plan had set out the pathway to Net Zero by 2040 for the Council’s own operations, with a 50 per cent reduction by 2030. Given that the Council would no longer be operating in its current form in 2030, what would be the Council’s reduction in its operation in May 2028, when the new unitary authority would be established? It was noted that currently the Council’s operations were successfully moving towards the 50 per cent reduction and were already close to attaining this result. The exact reduction in 2028 was not recorded within the report, however Officers looked to provide this information as part of the annual update of the Strategy reported to Council.

Further clarification was requested on whether the District would be establishing an anaerobic digester in the future. It was noted that a definitive answer could not be provided on this matter. An anaerobic digester would come at a considerable expense to the Council and require significant capacity. Both Bromsgrove District and Redditch Borough Councils were committed to providing a Food Waste Collection service in October 2026 in line with legislation. However, Members were keen to understand what the journey was for the neighbouring Councils in terms of food waste. It seemed that not all Councils would be operating a food waste collection service within the Governement guidelines and it was queried why this was the case. Officers would provide updates on these areas as part of the annual updates.

It was noted that as the previous Cabinet Member for Climate Change had been consulted as part of the completion of the Strategy.  The contents of the Strategy would not be amended to reflect the change in portfolio responsibly and that she would present the report when it was considered at Full Council in the new municipal year.

RECOMMENDEDthat

1)    The Council’s Climate Change Strategy 2026–2031 be approved; and

2)    an annual review of the Climate Change Strategy be reported to Council.