Green projects competition comes to Hackbridge

15th November 2010

New funding will help Hackbridge residents to get two fantastic environmentally friendly schemes off the ground.  Local environment charity BioRegional has won funding to work with local community groups and residents to build green skills and knowledge, which will ultimately see local people come up with ideas for new eco-projects. Ten projects will be shortlisted, with residents voting for the most popular two - they will be supported by BioRegional to help gain funding and other practical support.

Philippa Ward, Head of One Planet Sutton at BioRegional, said:
“Lots of local people are getting involved in making Hackbridge an even better place for us to live and work. We want to help to make this happen. Our team will work with local groups to help them develop their ideas and get them funded. We can’t wait to see what ideas the groups come up with - they could be anything from energy saving to healthy living. In keeping with the times perhaps we could even see some green jobs created”.

The three year project will start with BioRegional’s team creating a community resource where people can find out about the environmental projects are already going on in the borough and how they can get involved. BioRegional will also support residents to make changes in their lives and reduce their carbon footprint; building up to the ‘ideas competition’ starting sometime next year.

Funded by City Bridge Trust, the £73,000 project is part of the wider One Planet Sutton initiative whereby the council and BioRegional are working with local people to make Sutton a place where residents can lead sustainable lifestyles while improving their quality of life. Hackbridge is the pilot area for the borough-wide initiative, lessons learnt will be spread across the borough with the ultimate aim for residents and businesses to be able to live and operate sustainably by 2025, including 100% renewable energy use for all buildings.

Clare Thomas, City Bridge Trust's Chief Grants Officer, said
“We are investing in several projects to encourage non-environmental groups to adopt greener working practices and to understand how environmental change can impact on their core business. BioRegional's work is an interesting local example of how this can work in practice and we look forward to seeing how it develops.”

If you are a member of a community group in Hackbridge and would like to get involved please contact info@bioregional.com or call 020 8404 4880.