Greener year ahead thanks to District Council’s £1million promise.

The District Council has invested hundreds of thousands of pounds on green initiatives in the past, and it’s not pausing its progress towards a greener future for the district now, with over £1m committed to be spent by the end of next financial year.

Of this £1million, £685,250 has been allocated to install solar PV panels across five of its corporate and leisure buildings.  An additional £40,000 will go towards surveying other Council owned sites to see how they too can benefit from measures to help reduce their carbon footprint. 

£350,000 will be invested in play parks across the district, modernising equipment and providing imaginative new play items for a variety of different users.  One example of proposed work is at Sconce and Devon Park in Newark, where, subject to a public consultation, the District Council is hoping to develop a new Castle-style playground and outdoor fitness zone.

A further £20,000 will be invested in the District Council’s Days of Action programme. Days of Action have proved popular with people across the district and involve teams from across the Council targeting a specific area with activities such as litter picking, bulky waste collections, community art projects and speed watch activities.

An additional £75,000 is being allocated to support vital climate change work which will be identified from the District Council’s De-Carbonisation Plan.

As well as the £1m above, an additional £30,000 will be added to existing budgets to ensure that all the extra trees planted across the district are well cared for and maintained.  A further £55,000 will go towards ensuring that housing developers work with licensed and experienced ecologists when planning to build new homes. This initiative aims to protect existing habitats and ecosystems while leaving behind more biodiversity than when the development began, thus achieving a biodiversity net gain.  And finally, an additional £41,000 will be invested in how the District Council can deliver carbon reductions in the wider district.

Councillor David Lloyd, Leader of Newark and Sherwood District Council explains more: “It can be very difficult at times to quantify how committed we are to ensuring a greener district.  But I don’t think it can be any clearer than our plan to invest over £1million this year on greener initiatives.  Let me be clear, this is additional spend above and beyond what is already planned on greener activities.

“We have come under criticism in the past from a small, yet vocal, few, but I am proud that this significant funding will not only demonstrate our commitment to becoming a greener district but further confirms that we are listening to what our residents want.  Feedback from our resident survey tells us that protecting our environment and securing it for the future is one of your top priorities.  We have listened and we are delivering that.”

All the initiatives funded are in addition to existing work and the kerbside glass service which, following approval this week, will be implemented as well.