Climate Change & Net Zero

Actions taken to date

February 2023- ChALC held a short survey amongst members to understand how they were addressing the challenges of climate change. Of the 33 that responded, 14 had formally declared a climate emergency. A range of mitigating actions are being undertaken by all, with the top action being creating a community orchard and/or wildflower meadow. The survey showed that there are a wide range of activities being carried out across Cheshire and Warrington, with evidence that parishes are really considering and thinking about what they are doing.

July 2023- ChALC subsequently held a successful online conference where participants heard from a range of guest speakers.

• Andrew Maliphant, the Environmental & Sustainability Advisor for The Society of Local Council Clerks – thoughts and key messages for local councils.
• Dr Rachel Giles, Evidence and Planning Manager at Cheshire Wildlife Trust – the Trust's perspective of the challenge of climate change and practical suggestions to help parishes mitigate the effects.
• Kate Harrison from Ashton Hayes – the village Carbon Neutral Project and the Community Energy CIC.
• Colette Fellows – the development and actions of the Grappenhall and Thelwall Climate and Ecological Emergency Committee.
• Richard Holland from Disley – the Council's journey to install a couple of electric vehicle charge points.

November 2023 – ChALC conducted a second survey on behalf of a member council, to assess the appetite of councils to share a common resource to help to introduce net zero initiatives into council actions and processes.

February 2024 – ChALC Executive Board agreed to set up a Net Zero Working Group. Membership is individuals with an interest from the Executive Board and members councils and the group will meet at regular intervals to highlight key information, share good practice and explore practical mechanisms to support local councils meet climate change challenges. The main areas of focus will be on actions and activities that are of specific interest to local councils in terms of climate change mitigation, and the group will use this page of the website to share information and ideas.

Useful Resources

Please find below links to useful resources. N.B. Some links to documents are only available to ChALC members (who are signed into the website) to view and download.

• The Place Based Initiative – a climate action network for local councils and their community groups
• Planning Application Guidance – commenting on local planning applications, guidance in respect of climate change
• Invest Net Zero Cheshire – has developed a roadmap to net zero that will drive inward investment into the low carbon energy projects already identified or underway, across renewables, hydrogen, carbon capture, energy storage, and smart grids.
• 1.pdf.11(CEC Carbon Neutrality Action Plan) – a detailed action plan which focuses on the next 5 years to ensure Cheshire East is on track and has actions in place to progress the borough toward carbon neutrality.
• MotherTree – Our free money carbon calculato r makes it quick and easy to become aware of the impact of your savings & investments and switch to greener providers.
• Mackay Carbon Calculator – provides a model of the UK energy system that allows you to explore pathways to decarbonisation, including net zero by 2050.
• Carbon Copy – is a UK charity inspiring more big-thinking local action for climate and nature.
• Plastic Waste Reduction Initiative – a community network across the UK that's tackling single-use plastic from the beach, all the way back to the brands and businesses who create it.