We have received £37,600 from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero to fund the production of heat decarbonisation plans.

We were one of 118 successful applications out of more than 700 made for Phase 5 of the Public Sector Low Carbon Skills Fund.

BEST Operations Manager Alison Austin explained the money will be used to fund the development of specialist energy assessments across our schools by property consultancy, Barker Associates.

She said: “These plans will set out current energy usage in our schools and their carbon footprints, as well as provide expert advice and recommendations on what improvements can be made. This could be all sorts of things from better insulation to more simple measures, such as switching off lights.

“We are very grateful to Barkers for their support throughout the application process and to Salix, who will be delivering the funding.”

BEST Chief Executive Officer Dr Alan Lee said: “The Department for Education requires all schools to have a climate action plan and sustainability lead in place by September 2025. Our schools have done much tremendous work in this area.

“These plans are the next step in our journey towards net zero across BEST and I am delighted we have been able to secure this grant funding to set us on our way.”

Christopher Masters, Programme Manager for the Low Carbon Skills Fund at Salix, said: “Having a robust heat decarbonisation is a strong first step on the decarbonisation journey.

“The Low Carbon Skills Fund has proved again and again to be a highly valuable fund for public sector organisations as we address the net zero agenda.”