Shropshire Climate Action: The Climate Emergency The Climate Emergency Shropshire’s temperature change since 1884 Ed Hawkins, University of Reading; Data: Met Office What is causing the c limate emergency and what are the impacts? Human activity since the industrial revolution has led to increased greenhouse gases (GHGs) which have caused a rapid increase in temperatures that now threatens life on earth. GHGs have increased from natural long-term peaks of 285 ppm (parts per million) to more than 450 ppm since the start of the industrial revolution. G lobal warming is changing the earth’s climate and the impact it has on the earth’s surface, both on land and sea, such as melting of the ice caps and thawing of frozen tundra. Whilst the climate represents atmospheric conditions measured over a long period of time (at least 30-year averages), the weather is our experience of atmospheric conditions at a given point in time. The growth of extreme weather conditions (both in terms of frequency and intensity) is also an indicator of climate change taking place. We’ve also doubled our use of resources and now consume over twice the sustainable resource use limit for life on the planet. The destruction of the natural environment has wiped out more than half of life on Earth since 1970. We’ve lost soils, forests and wetlands that kept CO2 in check, further accelerating global heating. Compared to less developed nations, the footprint of the western world is huge – and the roots of the problem lie here in Shropshire, birthplace of the industrial revolution. How can we respond? Responding to climate change includes two linked processes: Mitigation: r educing GHG emissions (achieving “net zero”) is needed to stop the earth’s atmosphere warming to an extent that irreversible damage may be done to human society and the natural world, ideally (but increasingly unlikely) to less than 1.5 degrees C above pre-industrial atmospheric temperatures, and Adaptation: taking measures to address the effects of climate change on human society and Nature is required because climate change is already having an impact, whether via drought, localised flooding, heatwaves or through pests and diseases, affecting our housing and transport infrastructure, food production and the natural environment, and also human health and well-being. Find out what the climate crisis means for Shropshire: How to achieve Zero Carbon Britain Watch this video from the Centre for Alternative Technology which looks at how to achieve Zero Carbon Britain using today’s technology, while helping nature thrive.

< Back SSCA at Ludlow Green Festival Fiona Morgan and Jane Cullen 9 Jul 2023 Promoting climate action, carbon reduction and Nature recovery We had a lovely day at the Ludlow Green Festival on Sunday 9th July which was organised by Ludlow21.There was a vibrant atmosphere with lots of people enjoying the stalls displaying eco wares, arts and crafts, locally sourced plants, food and drink. SSCA contributed a series of speakers on key topics. They shared the stage with the bands who played throughout the day, alternating with the Ted-style talks. This worked very well, great bands, great talks including: Nick Read (SSCA) 'Faith and Zero Carbon - a guide to church action on climate change' Allan Wilson (Save Our Shropshire) 'Learning to live in the future' Rob Narraway (Marches Energy Agency) 'Is your home future fit? Things to do now!' Pat Sirling (Friends of the River Wye) 'Saving the Wye through people power' Colin Richards (Friends of Mortimer Forest) 'Can't see the wood for the trees, improving our plantation forests for wildlife and people' Our swap stand went down well too with lots of books, CD’s, toys and clothes donated, swapped and given away to encourage people to reuse and share our resources as a key way to reduce our carbon emissions. We also ran a stall on 'Gardening for Nature' which was festooned with wild flowers and a map of Ludlow town showing each dwelling. Local expert enthusiast Sue Crichton from Abdon & Wheathill joined us to promote and discuss all the possible ways to garden and support wildlife while increasing biodiversity, creating habitats to encourage insects, amphibians, birds and bats. We were also able to display some of the climate photographs by students from Hereford Sixth Form College taking A level photography. Previous Next

Shropshire Climate Action: Water Water Water management Water management is integral to achieving net zero carbon. Good soil management maintains and enhances water quality a nd regulates water flow. Soils facilitate the infiltration of water a nd water storage, thereby influencing the rate of surface run-off and times to p eak flow. Conversely, excessive run-off from degraded or compacted soils leads to erosion of topsoil and soil organic matter and depletes valuable nutrients with negative impacts on soil fertility and water quality. The Severn Trent Environmental Protection Scheme (STEPS ) works with landowners and farmers in priority catchments to improve water quality and enhance water availability. Natural Flood Management (NFM) NFM uses natural processes to reduce the risk of flooding and erosion. It generally involves three mechanisms: increasing filtration, for example by reducing soil compaction or improving soil quality; storing w ater, by restoring functioning floodplains or digging retaining ponds; and slowing flows by creating woodland buffer strips or “leaky dams” of woody material. Shropshire Wildlife Trust and Shropshire Council operate a “Slow the Flow” project working with landowners on natural flood management techniques. A new type of river management Cartoon explaining simply a holistic approach to river and water management and why we have to consider the whole system (4 minutes). Natural flood management Demonstrating simple practical methods of ‘slowing the flow’ and improving water quality in water catchments (7 minutes). How to get involved The following organisations are involved in flood prevention and river restoration: Communities Prepared equips Community Emergency Volunteer (CEV) and Flood Warden groups with the know ledge, skills and confidence to prepare for, respond to, and recover from flooding and other emergencies. Severn Rivers Trust is an independent charity established in 2008 to protect and enhance the River Severn, its tributaries and streams. This includes restoration projects, community engagement and land management projects with landowners. For volunteering opportunities click here. If you are interested in getting involved with monitoring river pollution , contact the Severn Rivers Trust and Shropshire Wildlife Trust.

< Back A New Government: Fiona Morgan and Julie Howe 1 Aug 2024 Is this the Green revolution we have been waiting for? Since the new Labour Government came to power on 5 July, a number of announcements have been made regarding the transition to net zero. These include nine of the bills in the King’s Speech on the 17 July. Energy Setting up Great British Energy, a publicly owned company, that will invest in renewable energy: the Government’s overarching intention is to double onshore wind, triple solar power and quadruple offshore wind by 2030.[1] In relation to installing roof top solar, Ed Milliband (Energy Secretary) stated, “We will encourage builders and homeowners, in whatever way we can, to deliver this win-win technology to millions of addresses in the UK so people can provide their own electricity, cut their bills and at the same time help fight climate change.”[2] He also approved 3 massive solar farms in the East of England which will have a capacity of approx. 1.35 GW (around 10% of current capacity).[3] The Government has also lifted the effective ban on onshore windfarms in England and stated that the decision to approve a new coalmine in Cumbria in 2022 was unlawful, because emissions from burning coal were not considered in the planning decision.[4] Planning changes The Government has set out its intention to build 1.5 million homes, including on some green belt sites.[5] To what extent developers will be compelled to install solar and other renewables on new homes is not yet known. Nature According to the Guardian, ‘Little mention was made about Nature, other than the promise to “use development to fund nature recovery”, mainly through the Biodiversity Net Gain mechanism by which developers must restore and improve the natural environment and species habitats in return for being allowed to build.’[6] The Water (Special Measures) Bill aims to strengthen regulation, giving the water regulator new powers to ban the payment of bonuses if environmental standards are not met, to increase accountability for water executives and to increase investment in infrastructure.[7] Questions remain over the extent to which this will help to address pollution across Welsh and English waterways and beaches. Transport Other transport related bills that will have climate related impacts include the Better Buses Bill - councils across England will be able to determine the details of bus services provided by private companies, such as routes, timetables and standards.[8] There were several railway bills, including one taking passenger railway services back into public ownership and a high-speed rail (Crewe to Manchester) bill. The Sustainable Aviation Fuels Bill – begging the question: does such a thing exist? What do you think of the Climate Action-related announcements so far? How effective will they be? We would love to hear your opinions. Contact the team at admin@zerocarbonshropshire.org or fiona@mea.org.uk . [1] Make Britain a clean energy superpower, The Labour Party [2] Labour’s ‘rooftop revolution’ to deliver solar power to millions of UK homes, The Guardian [3] ibid [4] UK: Cumbria coalmine was unlawfully approved, Carbon Brief [5] From green energy to rivers, environment at heart of nine plans in king’s speech, The Guardian [6] ibid [7] Government introduces new bill to clean up water sector, Defra [8] Councils to get power to replicate London’s bus network nationwide, Evening Standard Previous Next

< Back Wellington's award winning cycle powered delivery service Anthony Lowe & Fiona Morgan 20 Sept 2024 Green Award winners at BBC Radio Shropshire's Make a Difference Awards 2024 Wellington Cycle Delivery Scheme recently won a Green Award at the BBC Radio Shropshire's Make a Difference Awards 2024 , held on 20 September, for its work promoting sustainable travel while delivering shopping by e-bike. The Cycle Delivery Service has 14 volunteers who provide a free-of-charge shopping delivery service within a 3 mile radius of Wellington on market days. In 2023, they completed over 1000 deliveries, cycling 3000 miles and reducing Wellington's carbon footprint by 625kgs. The group use Noddy - the e-cargo bike which belongs to Wellington Town Council - to provide their service. Dave Staniforth, one of the group's volunteers, told BBC Radio Shropshire, "We try to make a difference in our town, and I think if everybody else across Shropshire can make some little difference to their place then it will be a better place to live as well." Previous Next

Shropshire Climate Action: Local businesses What can you do as a local business? 1. Get advice on making your business more sustainable Businesses of all sizes have a vital role to play in climate action and becoming more sustainable. There are steps your businesses can take whether you’re just starting out or further along the road to net zero emissions. Search the Marches Growth Hub website and their Marches Net Zero Information Hub for net zero advice and support including green finance, funding and local authority support or use their Support Finder and search ‘Net Zero’ for the latest programmes. Sustainable Leaders in Business is an online sustainability award which helps you assess your business’ current environmental performance and set some goals for future improvement. The tool auto-fills some actions to enable you to achieve your sustainability goals, so you’re not faced with a blank canvas. Sustainable Leaders in Business: helps you to get started on your sustainability journey de-mystifies sustainable jargon celebrates your successes trains you and your staff to carry out all jobs in a greener way is there to support you through this journey. Visit the Sustainable Leaders in Business website for more information or email info@e4environment.co.uk to find out more. 2. Sign up to a Climate Fresk workshop Climate Fresk is a 3 hour facilitated workshop where you can get to grips with climate change in small groups in a safe, non-judgemental space, learn how to take action and enjoy some thought-provoking discussions. The workshops explore key drivers, mechanisms, and impacts of climate change, and map out where we are today and where we could be headed if we join forces. Previous participants have said: ‘I knew a fair bit about climate change but I learned so much new stuff. It was incredibly powerful sharing ideas in the group and understanding how everything is connected. We discussed next steps we could take and I left feeling focused and upbeat’. If you are a businesses or organisation and want to book a half day Climate Fresk workshop find out more via the BizEd Projects website. or email climate@bizedprojects.com 3. Get financial support to make your business premises more energy efficient The Marches Energy Grant (MEG) scheme provides SMEs from all sectors with free advice, energy assessments and grants for energy efficiency and renewable energy measures across Herefordshire, Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin. Sign up via: www.marchesgrowthhub.co.uk/marches-energy-grant 4. Install roof top solar panels on your business premises (Big Solar Coop) (see below) Big Solar Co-op installs solar panels on rooftops which are the size of a tennis court or bigger, and where the building has high electricity usage (prior to 2022 prices, at least £20k in electricity bills). See their website to find out more or submit information about your site via https://bigsolar.coop/submit-a-site/ for an assessment and response from the local coordinator.

For contributors - how to use WIX We're trying to see if people who can use a text editor, such as Word, can contribute to this site. This page will grow to contain links to articles and videos on using it, as well as giving some initial guidance. Let us know what works for you and any helpful sources you find. If you've just started, you are not being asked to produce final, pretty layout, using all the features of WIX. It's sufficient to add pages you need, text boxes (with bullet points rather than WIX lists), and images to be used. The WIX documentation for the editor is here . Warning: this is being written by a new user - it's probably be full of mistakes, but these can be fixed. Finding things in the WIX editor user interface In your WIX account, click on 'Edit Site'. The editor will open at the home page. There are boxes around elements, that aren't visible on the published site. Make sure you don't work in the header or footer (it should be possible to lock these for most users). Hover over 'Site', to the right of the WIX logo. The 'Preview', 'View Site' and 'Exit Editor' options are useful for now. Ignore the rest, and the rest of that row of controls, except for 'Help' of course. You can also 'Save', 'Preview' and 'Publish' the site using the controls at the top right. Just below it a drop down box, starting 'Page: ...'. Click on the down arrow and you'll see a list of the pages on the site. Select a page to edit it. (It should be possible to limit editing / publishing of a page to nominated users.) Beneath the drop down, on the left of the screen, is a column of icons. In order they are: Add Elements: You build a page by adding elements (such as a 'strip', a text box or images) to it. See below. Add Section: The top level of each page consists of horizontal 'sections'. You work within these sections. See below. Pages & Menus: Let's you access the site's pages, create new pages and edit the menu (simply drag and drop). Site Design / Add Apps / My Business: ignore these three. Media: Let's you see images, documents and videos already uploaded and upload more. You can also upload as you add new media to a page. Content Manager: looks as though it should let us organise content and make it easier to use. More to come ... Marketing & SEO: ignore for now. Using the WIX page editor This isn't as easy as it might be, but is quite useable once you've had a play. The following concentrates on the basics, so you can (1) edit text or change or add images to an existing page, or (2) create a new page and bung some content on it, leaving the final layout, for now, to someone else. Basic page structure The top level of a WIX page is a stack of 'Sections', each of which is a horizontal layer across the page. Touch a section and it will be outlined, in purple for me at the minute. With it highlighted, you'll see an 'Add Section' button at the bottom, which adds a new section beneath the selected on, and an up/down arrow to let you change the height of the section (at the bottom, you can't move the top border down). The next (optional) level of hierarchy is a 'Strip'. This is a horizontal layer to let you group other elements within a section. I think that one thing it does is help advanced users make sure that pages appear sensibly on mobile phones. Touch the '+' (Add Elements) button on the left to see the elements you can add and drag a strip to where you want it in your section. You can place other elements either directly in a section or nested within a strip. I'd avoid using strips for now, but it's helpful to know they exist. Other elements range from text boxes and images, through to complex structures, including ones under 'My Designs' (which I guess we should use to create standardised layout for us novices to use consistently). People adding content can probably get away with text and images for now! Before proceeding, note that two vertical dotted 'guidelines' on the page. You need to keep all content within the lines to be sure they are visible on smaller displays - see the documentation on guidelines . Guidelines in columns (like those in the next section) override the normal guidelines, as in the documentation. Editing an existing page I'm a paragraph. Click here to add your own text and edit me. It's easy. Creating a new page Click on 'Pages and Menu' on the left and click on '+ Add Page' at the bottom of the pop-up menu. You're offered a host of possible templates to start from, but few of them look useful to us. For now, click on '+ Blank Page' to get a blank page to play with. Add a blank section and then add a text box. Size it to fit if necessary. To edit text in the box either double click on the box or select the box and click on 'Edit Text'. It's best to only format the text using the Themes in the Text Settings window. (I'm currently using Paragraph 2 for this text.) I think it's probably best to have a separate text box for each heading and for each block of text, as in the section. I may be wrong. The headings can then each use an appropriate Theme (like a Word 'style'). A different new section Now click on '+ Add Section' at the bottom of the first section you created. Choose 'Basic' and select the template that looks like this section. It has a heading on the left and text in a box on the right, and isn't laid out very well! You could correct the layout, but don't bother for know. All that matters is that you can add a heading and some text as content. That can subsequently be put into a consistent layout for the website. As a final step, add an image element beneath the title in this section and resize it to fit. You can use an offered image or download one into the site media store. Again, the aim is simply to store an image away as content to be used with your text.

< Back Get ready for the county-wide Green Open Homes event this November Heather Kieniewicz 17 Oct 2025 Book your viewing of energy efficient homes across Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin and beyond Local charity Marches Energy Agency is running Green Open Homes this year across weekends in November. Homeowners across Shropshire, Herefordshire and Telford & Wrekin will be opening their doors to visitors, for free, to show and explain how they’ve made their homes more energy efficient. It’s a unique opportunity for visitors to experience first-hand things like heat pumps, triple glazing, underfloor heating and solar panels, to ask ‘daft’ questions without being made to feel daft, and without any sales pressure. What does underfloor heating actually feel like? How loud is a heap pump really? How much do you save if you have solar panels and a battery? These questions and many more answered! The properties can be found using the postcode search at https://www.greenopenhomes.net/ So start planning your visits! It’s a wonderful opportunity to learn, and to visit some corners of the Marches region you possibly don’t know. In addition to this fantastic event, Marches Energy Agency also offers: surveys and advice for homeowners to support your own home retrofit; a pathway to reach EPC band C if you’re a landlord; and free training and workshops if you’re a builder wanting to expand your retrofit knowledge and grow your business. Check out https://futurereadyhomes.org.uk/ for more information. Previous Next

< Back South Shropshire farmers working together for environmental benefit Kate Mayne 9 Jan 2024 Report from the Clee View Farmers Group In the Clee Hills area of South Shropshire a farmers group instigated by the local community is proving the benefit of working together. The Clee View Farmers Group was set up in June 2022 and currently has a membership of 57 farmers across 13,321 hectares. The group’s aim is to share learning and seek practical solutions to producing affordable food whilst dealing with environmental challenges such protecting & enhancing biodiversity and reducing emissions of carbon, phosphates, ammonia etc. Over the last year and a half the group has held events on herbal leys, rotational grazing systems, soil health and more. There have been talks on priority species, research into new biodiversity markets & even a debate about rewilding with WWF. The group has undertaken carbon foot-printing on 38 member farms and in 2024 will be working to understand the main Greenhouse Gas emissions from farm practices in the area and what can be done to reduce them. The group’s soil health testing programme in 2023 delivered some fascinating results and highlighted some real positives from current farming practices. For both arable and grassland samples from 54 farms the average organic matter content of soils was high & carbon stocks were above the national average. There is lots more work to do in 2024 as the group considers what can be done to enhance the nature recovery network whilst maintaining food production on our fertile soils. For more information please contact Kate Mayne: Katyjmayne@gmail.com Previous Next

< Back Joint meeting of South Shropshire Climate Action and Stretton Climate Care with Philip Dunne MP Mike Bourke 6 Jan 2023 Voicing concerns about climate action in the UK to our MP The meeting was attended by Philip Dunne (MP), Jane Cullen and Simon Ross represented South Shropshire Climate Action, Jon Cooke and Mike Bourke represented Stretton Climate Care. Each section of this report begins with the questions/comments we sent to PD in advance, followed (in bold) by a summary of his responses and our discussion. 1. We would like to thank you for your interest and support for our work, and for all that you do with the Environmental Audit Committee to hold the Government to account. We are especially grateful for the question you put to our new Prime Minister following COP 27, which prompted his pledge to the Net Zero Carbon targets, and also for the opposition which the EAC expressed to the proposed expansion of coal mining in Cumbria and Wales. Because of his responsibilities as Chair of the Environmental Audit Committee (EAC), PD does not comment on topics which are being dealt with by the Committee and which will be the subject of an official Report. This is why he has not previously shared with us his personal views on oil and gas licences in the North Sea, or on land-based wind generation. These have now been dealt with in the Report “Accelerating the transition from fossil fuels and securing energy supplies” , which has just been published: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/33366/documents/180604/default/ These Reports have to be replied to by the relevant Government Department(s) within a limited time frame. 2. We are, as you know, very unhappy about the go-ahead given for this new coal extraction and also about the licenses for new oil and gas projects in UK waters. We understand the energy security issues created by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and also the argument about jobs. But our concerns are twofold: · First, they send mixed messages to our own people and to other countries about the wholeheartedness of our commitment to Net Zero Carbon. We face an uphill struggle of public education, and people say, “If the Government isn’t consistent and serious about phasing out fossil fuels, why should we be?” · Secondly, the time scale involved risks derailing our progress. Dominic Carver’s paper in the House of Commons Library states that the achievement of NZC by 2050 requires a 78% reduction in carbon emissions by 2035. But these new fossil fuel extraction projects cannot be just short-term responses to the present situation. To be viable they must operate profitably well beyond 2035. Can you tell us, please, what you and the EAC see as the implications for the timetable, and the relationship between the present energy security emergency and the longer-term (and greater) climate emergency? The Oil and Gas Authority (which issues the licences) has now been renamed “The North Sea Transition Authority”, to send a clear message about the intention to phase out fossil fuels in due course. The EAC welcomes this and proposes that now is the time for the transition to begin. However, there is currently a backlog of about 200 oil and gas licenses to be allocated for the period since 2020. Many of these are for the “infilling” of small areas within existing large extraction zones. These licenses should enable extraction to come on stream within 3 years, with a period of 10-20 years before the source is exhausted. Licenses for extraction from new zones may take up to 10 years to come on stream, which means some extraction going on beyond 2050. The official definition of Net Zero Carbon accepts that some fossil fuel burning will continue beyond 2050, but this will have to be offset. Whether companies will take up these new licenses and invest depends on a combination of price and taxes. Hitherto British taxes on gas and oil extraction have been lower than the international average, but have now been increased to one of the highest, at 75% (Norway has the highest at 78%). The allowances for development and decommissioning which were previously available only for fossil fuels have now been extended to renewables, to create a level playing field. We expressed our disappointment that these new licences were being considered at all. PD replied that the Ukraine War had created new uncertainties about energy security, and the electorate would not forgive a government which let the lights go out. 3. We welcome the support expressed by leading Conservatives, in the context of the energy security problem, for relaxing the present restrictions on land-based wind turbines which are, as you know, the cheapest and most effective form of renewable electricity generation. We would like to know your own view on this, please. PD is now clear that a greater use of land-based wind generation is desirable, dependent on public support. One issue is the fear expressed to him by some constituents about the effect of wind turbines on the value of their houses. PD now wants the EAC to work on national guidelines for obtaining public support, including schemes which offer customers reductions in electricity prices. He agreed with us that it would be good to encourage special discounts or benefits for households in fuel poverty. In particular we would like to ask you if there is anything specific you can do to support the Net Zero project in Bishops Castle which includes a wind turbine, and for which there is strong local support despite the planning difficulties and the omission of the project from the Town Council’s Neighbourhood Plan? PD will contact Mike Watkins and Dave Green again to discuss support for the Bishops Castle project. 4. The ambition of SSCA is to achieve Net Zero Carbon in South Shropshire by 2030. We recognise the heroic nature of this aspiration, but the urgency is, in any case, the same if we are to meet the Government’s own interim targets. In co-operation with Zero Carbon Shropshire we are building a coalition of committed volunteers and organisations around the themes of Land and Biodiversity, Transport, Energy and Buildings and Communications and Education, and our two half-time project leaders Nick Read and Fiona Morgan are co-ordinating our work into an effective strategy. We would welcome your leadership and public support in making this Constituency a role model for other rural areas. In particular we have come to appreciate the enormous challenge of retrofitting the many thousands of homes in the Constituency for Net Zero Carbon. Promising developments include: · the Future Ready Homes project funded by the Energy Redress Fund and managed by MEA, · the work of Lightfoot Enterprises, · the policies of Connexus in the social housing sector, · and the exploration by Sustainable Bridgnorth and Shropshire Council of a heat network scheme involving PV and land-based wind generation in co-operation with local industry. In short, there is a wealth of initiatives and goodwill. But we find ourselves facing some considerable hurdles, and would welcome your advice and encouragement. i) A serious retrofit programme will require the upskilling of builders and contractors, and there are few retrofit specialists among our architects and surveyors. Net Zero Carbon are talking with the Colleges and industry bodies, but progress is limited by the lack of a sense of urgency. Simon Ross shared MEA’s experience of Housing Associations having to employ large national companies of varying quality in their retrofit schemes, and PD agreed with us about the urgency of training local retrofit specialists and upskilling contractors. He is interested in finding out about the work of N-MITE in Hereford in this area, and will explore the idea of convening a Construction Summit with Adrian Cooper and representatives of training institutions like Vicky Ayton at Shrewsbury College. ii) NZC will require a significant upgrade in the capacity of the Grid. Do you know what local impact this will have on the timetable for domestic retrofit, electric vehicles and the expansion of renewable generation? A recent meeting with the National Grid (which now owns Western Power) has made PD aware of the substantial increase in electricity consumption which the transition to NZC will involve. This will require the upgrading of the grid at a much higher rate than that allowed under the present investment rules, in order to create the capacity for new solar and wind generation farms to be connected as well as to supply more power to businesses and homes. PD is exploring the possibility of an EAC inquiry into this issue. iii) Those promoting the Bishops Castle and Bridgnorth schemes find that the planning system does not give the necessary priority to the achievement of Net Zero Carbon. iv) PD was not aware of the latest position on the Bridgnorth scheme, and will contact Simon Vickers. The planning issues are included in the recent EAC Report. v) Both householders and businesses find long-term planning and investment frustrated by ever changing Government policies, grants and incentive schemes. We sympathize with the difficulties faced by the Government, but how do we create some stability and a long-term, cross-party approach which will enable us all to move forward with confidence? PD and the EAC are very aware of the importance of a stable planning and incentive environment for investment decisions by households and businesses and also for the upskilling of contractors and the training of the future workforce. He accepts that recent performance in these areas has been discouraging. Previous Next

< Back Reflections on the new National Food Strategy for Shropshire Daphne Du Cros 26 Jul 2025 Shropshire Good Food Partnership consider if this is the solution we have been waiting for After digesting the new food strategy and considering the reflections and reviews of other professionals in food policy, this is our analysis, and what it means for Shropshire, our communities, and people. As a note, I write this as someone who has lived and breathed food policy for over 15 years of my career and have watched in disbelief as our food system and regard for farmers has continued to slide into the background of policy and governance. Opportunities have been missed and leadership on food system transformation has been weak. The result has been a heavy corporate influence that has impacted billions of people, our economy, our environment, knowledge, links to nature and confidence in our own abilities to feed ourselves and know food. Something has to change quickly, which is why I finished my PhD in Food Policy and started a Market Garden, and then became the coordinator of SGFP: We can’t wait for government to hand down a perfectly formed solution for us to take action (perfect is the enemy of the good, afterall). The grassroots must lead the charge on change, as indeed it always has. The National Food Strategy is a positive step for central government, but it’s essentially playing catch up with what we already know, and what many of us have been doing for the last decade(s). By and large, the National Food Strategy (NFS) is being well received, with comments saying that it picks up where Henry Dimbleby’s strategy left off (a good document that should have been put to work right away), particularly that it makes the effort to connect the dots on food, farming, culture, public health and environment. To read the full article on Shropshire Good Food Partnership's website please click here . Previous Next

< Back SSCA visit to the NMITE exhibition in Herefordshire Mike Bourke 6 Feb 2023 Higher Education gets retrofitting Members of the SSCA Energy and Retrofit Group visited the New Model Institute for Technology and Engineering (NMITE) , a new university located in Hereford which offers a range of engineering degrees and short courses including on the sustainable built environment. They viewed the very energy-efficient building and the retrofit displays of wall insulation (external and internal), floor insulation and windows. Only organic materials were used (no plastic). Previous Next