Burnley College’s commitment to Environmental Excellence earns place in finals of Burnley Business Awards 2022

Burnley College has reached the finals of the 2022 Burnley Business Awards in the keenly-contested Environmental Excellence category.

The College has been shortlisted after displaying its commitment to creating a sustainable Campus and to ensuring that learners, employers and the community have access to the very best training to embrace the latest technology to help protect the earth’s precious resources.

The College is currently leading on a project funded through the Government’s Strategic Development Fund (in association with the Lancashire Colleges, Blackburn College, Lancaster and Morecambe College and West Lancashire College) to help small and medium-sized enterprises reach their net zero targets.

The creation of a ‘Low Carbon Hub’ will allow employers access to the latest resources to help their workforce’s embrace the sustainability ethos; introduce them to the very latest equipment and technology to support the move to net-zero and monitoring equipment which can highlight energy usage.

And, through the College’s strong Student Voice, learners are also playing their part in ensuring the College leads the way on environmental issues. They took part in the recent COP26 climate summit, challenging local employers on their green credentials and support College initiatives including cycle to College schemes and clothes recycling initiatives.

The College Campus itself is also being continually developed to reduce our carbon emissions and become ‘greener’. Work has included developing our solar power generation capabilities; building a new teaching block which is ‘fossil free’ with heat and light provided by air source heat pumps and electric boilers; electric vehicle charging points for staff and visitors; rainwater harvesting and recycling and the expansion of green areas and planting.

Paul Sharples, Business Development Manager at the College, who is leading on the SDF project, said:

“Reaching the finals of the Environmental Excellence Award is a great acknowledgement of the giant strides Burnley College is taking in helping to preserve the globe’s precious resources and securing the future of businesses across the region.

“Our learners are passionate about sustainability in all forms and are really driving the College forward in embracing the very latest technologies and practices to make a difference to the environment.

Mick Cartledge, chief executive at Burnley Council, which is leading the event, said:

“I know the judges were incredibly impressed by the entries and it was a tough job to whittle down the entries to the finalists. It’s testament to the hard work and resilience of our business community over the past two years and I’d like to thank Burnley businesses for their commitment and perseverance.

“All the best to the finalists and we look forward to celebrating the borough’s determination on the night of the awards.”