Agenda item

*RESOLVED –

1.   That the Climate Change Delivery Plan, which details the Council’s climate related activities for the financial year 2024/25 be approved for implementation.

2.   That the commitment within the Asset Management Strategy regarding the use of capital receipts - to reinvest capital receipts, secured through the disposals programme, into the land and property estate to fund maintenance, decarbonisation and investment activity be endorsed.

3.   That authority be delegated to the Service Director – Corporate, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Climate Change, Planning and the Environment, to make amendments to the Climate Change Delivery Plan between formal review periods to optimise operational effectiveness.

REASONS FOR DECISIONS

1.   In July 2019, Chesterfield Borough Council declared a Climate Emergency. As part of the declaration, CBC made a commitment to become a carbon neutral organisation by 2030 and to support the wider borough to become carbon neutral by 2050.

2.   The Council’s initial Climate Change Action Plan (2019-23) is now complete, and the subsequent Climate Change Strategy 2023-2030 and accompanying delivery plans provide a framework for the Council to reach its corporate commitment to becoming carbon neutral by 2030 and take steps to support the wider Borough to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 as required by government.

The Cabinet Member for Climate Change, Planning, and the Environment presented a report seeking Cabinet approval for the adoption and implementation of the Climate Change Delivery Plan for the financial year 2024/25. The Plan would enable the Council to make further progress towards achieving its 2030 carbon neutral commitment and continue supporting the activities of others towards achieving the Council’s wider 2050 Borough-wide decarbonisation target.

The Council had adopted a Climate Change Action Plan in 2020 (CCAP) detailing thirty-nine actions to be carried out by the Council before 2023.  The Council’s first CCAP (2019/23) enabled the Council to begin its journey towards it carbon neutral target. Building on this, during 2023, the Council adopted a new Climate Change Strategy (2023/30) to guide its activities through 2030.

The Strategy was supported by an annual Delivery Plan.

Progress in relation to implementation of the current Delivery Plan had been monitored quarterly and reported via the Council Plan performance monitoring arrangements, and through regular update reports to the Council’s Select Committees.

During 2023/24 progress had been made in areas such as fleet decarbonisation, distribution of warm homes grants for private sector homes, replacement of shared heating systems on council housing estates, data monitoring and community engagement.  A summary of the Council’s performance against the current Delivery Plan would be brought to Cabinet in the Summer as part of the Climate Change Annual Report for 2023/24.

The proposed Delivery Plan for 2024/25 contained 12 priority areas of work to be completed during the second year of the Strategy. The Climate Change Delivery Plan 2024/25 was attached at Appendix 1 of the officer’s report.

*RESOLVED –

1.   That the Climate Change Delivery Plan, which details the Council’s climate related activities for the financial year 2024/25 be approved for implementation.

2.   That the commitment within the Asset Management Strategy regarding the use of capital receipts - to reinvest capital receipts, secured through the disposals programme, into the land and property estate to fund maintenance, decarbonisation and investment activity be endorsed.

3.   That authority be delegated to the Service Director – Corporate, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Climate Change, Planning and the Environment, to make amendments to the Climate Change Delivery Plan between formal review periods to optimise operational effectiveness.

REASONS FOR DECISIONS

1.   In July 2019, Chesterfield Borough Council declared a Climate Emergency. As part of the declaration, CBC made a commitment to become a carbon neutral organisation by 2030 and to support the wider borough to become carbon neutral by 2050.

2.   The Council’s initial Climate Change Action Plan (2019-23) is now complete, and the subsequent Climate Change Strategy 2023-2030 and accompanying delivery plans provide a framework for the Council to reach its corporate commitment to becoming carbon neutral by 2030 and take steps to support the wider Borough to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 as required by government.