£557m government investment for public buildings to switch to cleaner energy 

Schools, pools, and hospitals will be supported to make energy efficient upgrades, with over £557 million government investment. The new projects will help reduce emissions and cut bills, as part of the government’s plan to reach its world-leading net zero targets in a sustainable, pragmatic way.

Heat pumps, solar panels, insulation and low-energy lighting will be rolled out to reduce the use of fossil fuels across the public sector and strengthen the UK’s energy independence, helping save taxpayers hundreds of millions of pounds.

This follows significant progress already made towards reaching net zero – with the UK becoming the first major economy to halve emissions.

Decarbonising the public sector is expected to save an estimated £650 million per year on average to 2037.

Over 1,000 projects have now received funding since 2020 to upgrade thousands of buildings through the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme.

New projects receiving funding in this phase include:

• Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust has been awarded over £21 million to decarbonise three buildings by installing new heat pumps alongside other measures including wall, loft and roof insulation, double glazing and LED lighting
• Loughborough University has been awarded over £2 million to decarbonise their Olympic size swimming pool by replacing old gas-fired boilers with more efficient, cleaner heat pumps
• Surrey County Council has been awarded over £5 million to cut emissions across 19 sites including six libraries, four nursing homes, two community centres, Guildford Fire Station, five schools and the council’s own headquarters in Reigate

The government has also announced the award of £27.5 million from the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund to support businesses with high energy use to reduce their bills and carbon emissions.

Minister for Energy Efficiency and Green Finance Lord Callanan said: “From school corridors to the businesses that power up our economy, we want to make sure buildings of all shapes and sizes are supported to deliver net zero.

“By allocating over £557 million we are standing steadfast behind our public sector and local businesses, providing the help they need to make the switch to cleaner, homegrown energy. This will not only help cut bills in the long term, but ensure we keep reducing our emissions – having already led the world by halving them since 1990.”