Climate change action plan 2025 to 2026 -

Sponsor: Assistant Director: Property Services

Operational lead: Head of Strategic Assets

Cost: £1.005 million

Summary:

We will deliver over £1 million of investment in the corporate estate, including:

• the retrofit and decarbonisation of 4 buildings
• replacement of outdated equipment
• flood prevention, insulation and ventilation improvements across the estate

We will also produce an estate decarbonisation plan, setting out how we will get the rest of our estate to net zero in future years.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• deliver investment in estate (£1.005 million)
• produce estate decarbonisation plan

Partners: Atkins, GSENZH

Co-benefits: Cost savings

Sponsor: Assistant Director: Highways and Transport

Operational lead: Transport Strategy Manager

Cost: £18,000

Summary:

We will introduce a staff travel plan to support our staff to reduce their travel emissions. Specific actions will include providing electric vehicle (EV) charging to support the (EV) staff leasing scheme which has now launched and trialling a pool e-bike for staff use.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• produce staff travel plan
• install EV charging at Time Square (£15,000)
• add an e-bike to the pool bike store at Time Square (£3,000)
• trial additional active travel support for staff, for example cycle equipment, led rides
• review and update council travel policies

Partners: Not applicable

Co-benefits: Staff retention and health

Sponsor: Assistant Director: Contract Services

Operational lead: Climate Strategy Programme Team Leader

Cost: £15,000

Summary:

We will measure our scope 3 emissions - those we indirectly cause, for example through the products and services we buy, for the first time (see enablers below). This will enable us to produce a more complete account of our emissions footprint and understand what we can do to tackle them. W we will introduce guidance and support for procurement and contract management to embed emissions reduction in all of our commercial activities.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• calculate scope 3 emissions footprint (£15,000)
• introduce climate procurement guidance for staff by end of September 2025
• develop 2 carbon reduction plans for major contracts
• review major upcoming procurement exercises (above £1 million) in procurement pipeline or commissioning plans and advise on potential climate requirements

Partners: Not applicable

Co-benefits: Cost savings

Cost: £0

Lead: Climate Strategy Programme Team Leader

Partners: Not applicable

Co-benefits: Not applicable

Details:

Building on the estate decarbonisation plan and scope 3 emissions measurement, we will create a detailed roadmap which shows how the council’s emissions footprint will reach net zero.

Cost: £35,000

Lead: Head of Environmental Services

Partners: Suez

Co-benefits: Not applicable

Details:

If the ongoing trial is successful, we will expand the use of HVO to cover the entire waste vehicle fleet used by our contractors Suez in quarter 3.

Cost: £1,000

Lead: Climate Strategy Programme Team Leader

Partners: TRL

Co-benefits: Cost savings

Details:

We will trial the use of the Eco STARS fleet decarbonisation consultancy service, offered by local company TRL, on a council or contractor operated fleet.

Cost: £0

Lead: Technical Business Analyst

Partners: Not applicable

Co-benefits: Not applicable

Details:

We will begin including relevant climate change measures in all major projects run by our digital change team and record these in a register.

Sponsor: Cabinet Member for Children and Young People

Operational lead: Business Relationship Manager

Cost: £5,000

Summary

We will work with Solar for Schools to offer solar panel installation to our schools at no upfront cost, funded through private investment. Schools will pay back the cost using part of the energy bill savings they secure from the panels, enabling them to make savings from the date of installation.

Deliverables

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• commission feasibility studies for every school in Bracknell Forest (£5,000)
• engage schools on the scheme, with at least 2 schools installing panels

Partners: Solar for Schools, schools and academy trusts

Co-benefits: Cost savings for schools

Sponsor: Cabinet Member for Economy and Regeneration

Operational lead: Corporate Relationship Manager

Cost: £0

Summary

We will look to make sure that new construction delivered by the council’s joint venture with Countryside, Cambium Partnership, has robust sustainability credentials. This will include aiming for the highest feasible standards for the Southern and Eastern Gateway regeneration projects in the town centre.

Deliverables

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• agree high standards for Southern and Eastern Gateway developments, ideally including a heat network powered by heat pumps, BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) Excellent standards and a comprehensive car club offer
• support a heat network feasibility study and complete a vision-led analysis of future parking need in the town centre with the aim of minimising vehicle travel

Partners: Cambium Partnership

Co-benefits: Housing quality

Sponsor: Assistant Director: Planning

Operational lead: Team Manager - Development Plan

Cost: £5,000

Summary

We will look to make sure that new construction in the borough meets the highest possible sustainability standards by issuing guidance for other developers to follow.

Deliverables

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• introduce sustainable construction guidance for developers
• prepare the evidence base needed to raise requirements for development in future local plan updates
• engage APSE Energy to provide technical support (£5,000)

Partners: APSE

Co-benefits: Housing quality

Sponsor: Cabinet Member for the Environment, Community and Housing

Operational lead: Head of Housing

Cost: £10,000

Summary

We will conduct an area-based retrofit scheme to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions from a number of adjacent or nearby properties in one or more targeted areas, working in co-operation with a local installer. We aim for this to include a range of property types and tenures, ideally including council-owned temporary accommodation, housing association properties and privately-owned properties. Each owner will be responsible for the cost of retrofitting their asset, but the scale should reduce the cost per property and we will look at subsidising the cost of certification.

Deliverables

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will deliver at least one area-based retrofit scheme, covering at least 5 houses (including at least one council temporary accommodation property) (variable cost; to be funded from housing maintenance budget).

Stretch deliverables:

We will support the cost of PAS certification for participating homeowners (£10,000).

Partners: Abri and local installers

Co-benefits: Resident energy costs and health

Sponsor: Assistant Director: Contract Services

Operational lead: Energy and Climate Engagement Team Leader

Cost: £0

Summary:

We will expand our offering of support for local homeowners, including owner-occupiers and landlords, to retrofit their homes - both targeted support for those facing financial hardship or health conditions and a wider offering for all residents.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• appoint a managing agent to deliver ECO4/GBIS funding from energy companies on behalf of the council
• refer eligible residents to the Warm Homes: Local Grant scheme

Stretch deliverables:

We will:

• put in place a Big Community Switch scheme to enable residents to switch energy provider together and reduce costs
• explore the potential to expand the successful Solar Together scheme into air-source heat pump provision
• promote the opportunities available to homeowners, including some messaging specifically tailored to landlords

Partners: iChoosr and funding providers

Co-benefits: Resident energy costs and health

Sponsor: Cabinet Member for Leisure, Culture, Public Protection and Democracy

Operational lead: Assistant Director: Contract Services

Cost: £0

Summary:

We will work with local taxi operators to establish a roadmap to decarbonising their fleet, setting out a path for the transition to EVs including investment in the necessary infrastructure from different partners.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• consult taxi industry on transition to EVs
• co-design a feasible roadmap for the taxi fleet to reach net zero, including contributions from different partners and investments needed

Stretch deliverables:

We will explore other options to support the industry, such as demand-responsive travel or local EV community car-pooling.

Partners: Taxi industry

Co-benefits: Local economy

Sponsor: Cabinet Member for Planning, Transport and Countryside

Operational lead: Assistant Director: Highways and Transport

Cost: £800,000

Summary:

We will deliver a package of active travel improvements to make walking and cycling more accessible and attractive options for residents. This will include investments in infrastructure, building on work in previous years, as well as ongoing support such as cycle buses. We will aim to work with parish and town councils to assess the state of the walking and cycling network across the borough and harness their Community Infrastructure Levy funding to supplement our own.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• deliver Safer Routes to Schools programme of crossing improvements and speed limits at King’s Academy Easthampstead Park, Edgbarrow, Binfield C of E, Warfield C of E, and Kennel Lane schools
• footway improvement schemes and road safety measures
• improve bus stops at Moss End
• help schools develop updated travel plans
• pilot cycle buses to schools
• expand our offering of Dr Bike cycle repair sessions and Bikeability cycle training
• launch a regular newsletter for the MyJourney platform with active travel updates
• involve volunteers, for example in cycleway tidying or led rides around the borough

Partners: Parish and town councils, Green and Active Volunteers, Transport working group

Co-benefits: Health, congestion and air quality

Cost: 0

Lead: Transport Strategy Manager

Partners: Charging provider

Co-benefits: Local economy

Details:

We will procure a provider to deliver EV charge points with the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) funding we have received.

Cost: £3,000

Lead: Head of Youth Justice and Community Safety

Partners: Local businesses

Co-benefits: Community safety

Details:

We will launch a pilot Women’s Safety Charter in the town centre, which will contain a number of actions local businesses can take to support women’s safety. This will support equal access to active travel opportunities.

Sponsor: Cabinet Member for Adults and Public Health

Operational lead: Director of Public Health

Cost: £0

Summary:

We will introduce a sustainable and health food policy for the council, setting out requirements for sustainable food purchase for council teams and events, and making sure that surplus food is donated or responsibly disposed of where possible. 

We will promote this to external stakeholders such as schools, care homes and NHS sites to encourage wider adoption and action. Alongside this, we will promote sustainable and healthy options to residents, including exploring the potential for healthy or plant-based cooking classes.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• launch and implement Bracknell Forest Council Food Policy
• encourage at least 3 external stakeholders to implement equivalent food policy

Stretch deliverables:

We will explore offering resources and cooking classes for council staff, schools and residents

Partners: schools, academy trusts and care homes

Co-benefits: Health and education

Sponsor: Head of Natural Estates

Operational lead: Biodiversity Officer (Net Gain)

Cost: £1,100

Summary:

We will offer advice to residents and local landowners through a land management advice portal and gardening workshops.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• launch the portal and encourage its use
• run at least 3 climate-friendly gardening workshops

Partners: Biodiversity working group

Co-benefits: Biodiversity

Sponsor: Head of Natural Estates

Operational lead: Biodiversity Officer (Net Gain)

Cost: £16,000

Summary:

We will take action to support local habitats and biodiversity. Our priorities this year will be to create and improve heathland habitat, including the creation of new ponds and riverbank restoration along the River Blackwater. 

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• riverbank restoration project along the River Blackwater
• heathland creation and restoration project
• creation of new heathland pond(s)

Partners: Biodiversity working group

Co-benefits: Biodiversity

Cost: 0

Lead: Head of Environmental Services

Partners: Suez

Co-benefits: Waste reduction

Details:

We will explore ways to further engage with residents to reduce waste and contamination, potentially by providing comparative feedback.

Cost: £2,000

Lead: Assistant Director: Digital, Customer Focus and ICT

Partners: RECLAIM

Co-benefits: Biodiversity and volunteering

Details:

We will implement a flagship urban greening scheme to revitalise the planters outside Bracknell Central Library, enabling volunteering and installing rainwater harvesting.

Sponsor: Cabinet Member for Council Strategy and Climate Change

Operational lead: Assistant Director: Contract Services

Cost: £30,000

Summary:

We will provide support to help Bracknell Forest Community Climate Action (BFCCA) ,  as a charity, and as the wider group led by the Joint Climate Action Board, to build capacity and deliver action themselves. We will co-produce these activities with volunteers and partners to maximise the impact of our support.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• support the BFCCA with capacity-building, including by supporting volunteer recruitment and providing £30,000 seed funding for schemes of their choice - these could include:
  • launching a volunteer-led energy efficiency and retrofit advice scheme
  • supporting projects led by the working groups
  • offering grants to community organisations to support direct action
• run an “away day” to co-produce activities to expand and build on the successes of the BFCCA and its partners and make sure its structures are fit for purpose
• support and collaborate with BFCCA on delivery of borough-wide Climate Summits

Partners: BFCCA

Co-benefits: Community cohesion and education

Sponsor: Assistant Director: Communities and Policy

Operational lead: Energy and Climate Engagement Team Leader

Cost: £0

Summary:

We will engage directly with residents to highlight the issue and potential co-benefits of action and to involve them in co-designing solutions. This will include a trial of a neighbourhood-based approach to engagement as well as targeted engagement with specific community groups. We will create a communications toolkit to support these activities.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• deliver at least one neighbourhood climate event, which will follow a “roadshow” format with a number of council teams attending to talk about key sustainability issues as well as giving residents the chance to feed back on issues and opportunities in their local area
• conduct ongoing engagement with a small number of selected community groups to address inequalities in involvement with climate action

Stretch deliverables:

We will design a concise toolkit of engagement materials to support our and others’ climate engagement work.

Partners: BFCCA

Co-benefits: Community cohesion

Sponsor: Head of Standards

Operational lead: School Standards and Effectiveness Partner

Cost: £23,000

Summary:

We will continue our work on engaging schools and pupils, once again delivering the successful schools’ climate conferences as well as an expanded programme of other activities such as workshops.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• deliver primary and secondary schools’ conferences to continue engagement with schools and pupils, building on the success of past events [Education team]
• facilitate the delivery of workshops in schools by relevant council teams and other organisations [Parking team and others]
• deliver a Young Changemakers or similar scheme to further engage pupils [Climate Change team]

Partners: Education working group, SEEd

Co-benefits: Education

Sponsor: Assistant Director: Contract Services

Operational lead: Climate Strategy Programme Team Leader

Cost: £0

Summary:

We will develop a robust understanding of the climate risks the council is exposed to, completing a risk assessment and planning for future actions to build resilience against the risks identified through a council adaptation plan. 

Alongside this, we will begin work on identifying and borough-wide risks, focusing on flood risk, extreme heat and drought, and public health impacts and formulating plans to address these. This will include engagement with at-risk groups to understand how they can be supported to protect themselves and with the wider community (including the BFCCA) to foster community-led adaptation.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• develop a council climate risk assessment and adaptation plan
• begin work on borough-wide climate risk assessment, including engagement with at-risk groups

Stretch deliverables:

We will look at updating our Flood Risk Strategy.

Partners: Not applicable

Co-benefits: Health

Cost: 0

Lead: Climate Strategy Programme Team Leader

Partners: Community spaces

Co-benefits: Community engagement

Details:

Explore developing a warm, cool and safe space campaign in which businesses, community centres and other indoor public spaces pledge to provide safe shelter for the public during extreme weather events. This could include providing free water and shade during extreme heat events and a warm space to shelter during extreme cold.

Cost: £575,000

Lead: Highway Engineering Manager

Partners: Ringway

Co-benefits: Resilience

Details:

We will invest in maintaining our road structures and improving drainage to make sure our transport network remains resilient to future climate impacts.

Sponsor: Head of Economic Development and Regeneration

Operational lead: Climate Strategy Programme Team Leader

Cost: £0

Summary:

This project will include a climate accreditation scheme linked to a green business registry highlighting local sustainable companies. We will also introduce training, guidance and networking offer and an inaugural green business award and look to organise a green energy joint purchase scheme if possible. 

Alongside this, we will invest in developing the green skills needed locally, including by running a green careers event and organising green work experience and apprenticeship schemes with partners across the borough.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• launch a pledge or accreditation scheme and green business registry
• develop or run at least 2 guides, 2 case studies and 1 training session
• run a green jobs fair to highlight sustainable career opportunities

Stretch deliverables:

We will:

• trial one or more sector-specific climate partnerships or accreditations
• run an inaugural green business event, including giving out a green business award to a local business
• launch a collective energy purchase scheme for businesses, if viable
• launch green apprenticeship and work experience schemes which offer support and recognition to employers providing relevant roles or experiences

Partners: BID, Economic Partnership, Bracknell and Wokingham College

Co-benefits: Local economy and employment

Sponsor: Assistant Director of HR and OD

Operational lead: Head of Learning and Development

Cost: £0

Summary:

The focus in this area will be on the delivery of Carbon Literacy Training (CLT) to managers to embed awareness of climate change and climate action across the organisation, but we will also explore other training needs to address in future.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will deliver CLT to senior managers using a “train-the-trainer” model.

Stretch deliverables:

We will look at specific training needs across the organisation and develop a training plan for the next phase.

Partners: Not applicable

Co-benefits: Staff retention

Sponsor: Assistant Director: Contract Services

Operational lead: Climate Strategy Programme Team Leader

Cost: £0

Summary:

To support future action and allow the climate change team to seek appropriate internal and external funding, we will develop a “pipeline” of projects from across the organisation which would support climate action for us to develop further. 

Alongside this, we will introduce a funding framework to guide decisions on forms of funding that might be appropriate for a project, for example council funding, grant funding, investment or private contributions.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• develop a project pipeline with potential projects from across the organisation
• develop a funding framework to guide funding decisions and approaches

Partners: Not applicable

Co-benefits: Investment

Sponsor: Cabinet Member for Finance and Corporate Improvement

Operational lead: Assistant Director: Finance and Business Services

Cost: £10,000

Summary:

We will deliver a local climate bond (or similar financial instrument) to enable residents to invest in local climate action. In the first year this will focus on funding work on the corporate estate, but we aim to drive wider impact through future rounds of the bond.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will get the bond launched.

Partners: Abundance

Co-benefits: Investment and resident finances

Sponsor: Assistant Director: Contract Services

Operational lead: Climate Strategy Programme Team Leader

Cost: £15,000

Summary:

We will take steps to embed partnership working throughout our activities and to harness the expertise of researchers from local universities to drive innovation, supported by a £15,000 co-delivery and innovation fund to enable the involvement of others.

Deliverables:

By March 2026 unless stated.

We will:

• publish guides on how different stakeholders can support our climate change strategy by September 2026
• engage regularly with key partners including the Greater South East Net Zero Hub (GSENZH) to maximise use of their support
• engage with partners listed above under each project to engage them in co-delivery of our actions
• engage local universities with the aim of running at least 1 innovative partnership project drawing on academic expertise

Partners: Various

Co-benefits: Partnership working

Cost: £0

Lead: Climate Strategy Programme Team Leader

Partners: Not applicable

Co-benefits: Not applicable

Details:

We will provide councillors and senior officers with a number of briefings and workshops to help them stay abreast of developments in the climate change space.

Cost: £0

Lead: Climate Strategy Programme Team Leader

Partners: Not applicable

Co-benefits: Not applicable

Details:

We will launch guidance for staff on climate change, including the procurement guidance mentioned under aim 1 above, by September 2025.

Cost: £0

Lead: Climate Strategy Programme Team Leader

Partners: Not applicable

Co-benefits: Not applicable

Details:

We will support public health with the introduction and embedding of the Integrated Impact Assessment Screening Tool, covering climate, environmental, health and equalities impacts, with the aim being that it is used on every relevant decision report.

Cost: £0

Lead: Climate Strategy Programme Team Leader

Partners: Not applicable

Co-benefits: Not applicable

Details:

We will attempt to secure corporate sponsorship from an appropriate local business for some of our activities, for example our schools’ or business events.

Cost: £0

Lead: Energy and Climate Engagement Team Leader

Partners: SSEN

Co-benefits: Not applicable

Details:

We will help teams across the council become familiar with and add data to SSEN’s Local Energy Net Zero Accelerator (LENZA) platform to support grid infrastructure development.

Cost: £0

Lead: Climate Strategy Programme Team Leader

Partners: Not applicable

Co-benefits: Reputation

Details:

We will submit at least 2 case studies to different publications to highlight our innovative action on climate change.