Climate change action plan for 2026 to 2027

Introduction

This action plan sets out the work we will do as an organisation to deliver the Climate Change Strategy 2025 to 2030 over the 2026 to 2027 financial year. This is in line with the Climate Change Strategy phase 2 delivery plan. 

This will build on the achievements of the Climate Change Strategy programme over the 2025 to 2026 financial year (Phase 1 of the Strategy). This will be reported on in detail by our upcoming Climate Change Annual Report for 2025 to 2026.

Actions for 2026 to 2027

Actions are divided into the following categories:

Projects

Significant pieces of new work which will require time and attention throughout much of the year. Some are identified as major projects. These are projects of particular importance to the strategic approach outlined for Phase 2 and which need close attention.

Deliverables

Smaller items which we plan to deliver but which will not need ongoing attention all year.

Business as usual items

Existing pieces of work that we will continue to deliver on an ongoing basis.

Areas for development

These are areas where we will try to explore options, create proposals, and seek appropriate grant funding during the year but will not deliver projects unless opportunities arise.

Projects and deliverables will be marked as: 

  • core – they will be a priority
  • stretch – they will be delivered if the required capacity is available

This combined approach will allow the council and its partners to: 

  • learn from delivery
  • adjust approaches based on evidence
  • scale interventions that demonstrate the greatest impact

Aim 1: reducing council emissions

Deliverables

We will:

  • invest in energy saving measures across our estate, including solar photovoltaic panels on a number of key assets, and the installation of a new microfiltration system at Coral Reef Water World to reduce utilities usage
  • explore retrofitting a council-owned property (potentially a newly-acquired social housing property) to be a show home for energy efficiency measures and low-carbon technologies (stretch)
  • move our refuse vehicle fleet over to using Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil
  • introduce new automated electric mowers at Downshire Golf Course, replacing ride-on diesel mowers
  • complete installation of EV charging at the council offices at Time Square, if structurally feasible
  • engage commissioning and procurement teams on integrating climate considerations into their processes, and explore updates to our procurement social value policy to improve climate change metrics
  • conduct Energy Performance Certificate ratings on commercial assets still requiring assessment and conduct remedial works to make sure these meet new standards if needed

Business as usual

We will:

  • use the corporate estate asset decarbonisation brief developed in 2020 to 2026 to prioritise buildings for detailed surveys and proposed upgrades
  • support the delivery of solar installations on Bracknell Forest schools in collaboration with the Solar for Schools scheme
  • support delivery of the collaborative Climate Action Plan we have created with our leisure contractor Everyone Active
  • engage staff on sustainable travel to work and expand support available
  • create further Climate Action Plans with key suppliers across the council (Stretch)

Areas for development

Our areas for development are:

  • water harvesting across the council estate
  • sustainable practices and heat recovery at the cemetery and crematorium
  • supporting community energy by exploring the potential to make roof space available on council properties
  • the decarbonisation of large vehicles
  • reducing emissions associated with banking and pension scheme investments
  • investigating opportunities to reduce staff travel in social care, for example by promoting group activities and improving local journey planning

Aim 2: reducing borough emissions

A. Buildings and energy supply

Major project: heat network proposal development

We will investigate the feasibility of a heat network in Bracknell town centre and the Southern and Eastern Gateway development sites. We will also prepare for the designation of heat network zones. This will include:

  1. Contributing to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero zoning pipeline.
  2. Procuring a feasibility study for a Bracknell town centre heat network, if appropriate.
  3. Exploring appropriate governance structures for a Zone Coordination Body in the area.

Project: sustainable construction guidance and advice

We will complete and issue the sustainable construction guidance for developers. This includes investigating the potential to:

  • create an accreditation scheme to recognise developers who go above the minimum requirements
  • offer consultancy services on climate adaptation and mitigation
  • offer sustainability certification to those bringing forward local development proposals, to improve the robustness of planning applications
  • offer support or assessment services for BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) accreditation
  • link in and promote our Transport Planning service for developers

Project: procurement of a new retrofit support service

We will procure a retrofit support service for residents in the borough, ideally as part of a consortium of Berkshire authorities.

This will follow and build on the Switch Together scheme (formerly Solar Together) which is currently running, the current contract for which comes to an end after this year.

Deliverables

We will procure and promote a service for residents to access retrofit assessments and support through an online tool.

Business as usual

We will:

  • support the promotion of the Warmer Homes scheme to residents. This scheme is funded by national government and provides fully funded home retrofit to targeted groups. We are part of a consortium led by Portsmouth City Council Consortium with whom we will collaborate
  • promote the Switch Together joint purchasing scheme which lets residents purchase solar panels, battery storage and EV chargers at a reduced cost
  • respond to resident enquiries on retrofit and conduct wrap-up work and reporting on previous programmes
  • enforce relevant planning requirements in the Local Plan

Areas for development

Our areas for development are:

  • identifying and developing proposals for locations for major energy infrastructure
  • supporting development of a local area energy plan for Berkshire
  • looking at options for construction waste recycling
  • understanding retrofit customer journeys and barriers
  • looking at opportunities for local grid flexibility
  • finding opportunities from the Warm Homes Plan and Local Power Plan, and for working with Great British Energy

B. Transport

Major project: supporting and promoting cycling

Cycle and e-bike hire and cycle stations

We will:

  • conduct market and community engagement on cycle and e-bike hire, moving to procurement and implementation if appropriate
  • explore locations for further cycling infrastructure such as repair stations (the initial priority), secure lockers or hubs
Engagement campaign, with a focus on schools

We will:

  • support volunteer-led cycles to help people explore the cycle network
  • use the Modeshift STARs (sustainable travel accreditation and recognition for schools) tool to track progress of schools on active travel, using small grants to schools with eligibility tied to Modeshift status to incentivise participation
  • run an integrated, evidence-based programme of schools workshops, bringing together the aims of the parking, climate change, public health and transport teams, including the safer parking on the school run programme, and the eco rewards scheme
  • trial bike buses to schools, supporting safe cycling
  • run further Dr Bike events in the BID area and the community
  • run the annual Cycle Festival and promote cycling at Summer of Fun events
  • provide resources to schools in support of Walk to School Week
  • run an equipment programme to help schools make sure children have access to suitable bikes and equipment (stretch)
  • support the Community Cycling Group in Bracknell Forest to co-ordinate, collaborate and bid for funding
Infrastructure, signage, mapping and publicity

We will:

  • engage the public to understand their use of mapping, signage and other navigation aids
  • seek collaboration with a university to research the most effective tools for navigation in an environment like Bracknell Forest
  • identify potential opportunities to improve signage
  • identify opportunities to build on or improve existing mapping

Project: car club

We will conduct market engagement on provision of a small number of car club vehicles in Bracknell. These could be used as pool cars for council staff as well as by residents when not needed for work purposes. We will procure and implement this if appropriate.

Deliverables

We will:

  • deliver on-street EV chargepoints across the borough in collaboration with the private sector using our local electric vehicle infrastructure funding
  • deliver infrastructure improvements and speed limits to support safe walking and cycling to school through the Safer Routes to Schools Programme, including at:
    • Kings Academy Easthampstead Park
    • Edgbarrow School
    • Kennel Lane School
    • Binfield Primary School
    • Warfield Primary School
  • 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, to support equal access to active travel opportunities

Business as usual

We will:

  • support the eco rewards scheme, encouraging walking and cycling
  • conduct highway and footway resurfacing to support walking and cycling and increase the climate resilience of the network

Areas for development

Our areas for development are:

  • engaging schools on air pollution, including the benefits of active travel and green infrastructure
  • building on work to engage the taxi trade on EVs, investigating how licensing conditions could support EV uptake as well as other forms of support for drivers
  • providing training and support for residents from disadvantaged or minoritised backgrounds (for example, neurodiverse residents or women) to learn to cycle
  • installing fixed cycling monitors to get real-time data on cycling trends
  • looking at further opportunities to promote EV uptake, including for vans and larger vehicles for example through business trials and joint purchase schemes
  • looking at home charger sharing schemes
  • looking at options for demand responsive transport
  • looking at options to reduce emissions from freight transport and larger vehicles
  • further measures to encourage active travel and public transport use

C. Land and waste

Major project: urban greening

We will:

  • create a pipeline of green infrastructure projects across the borough such as tree planting, habitat creation and sustainable drainage measures
  • assess the success of these projects based on criteria including their contribution to climate mitigation and adaptation
  • begin delivering these projects through a range of approaches including funding from:
    • developers
    • grant schemes
    • Trees for Streets
    • green volunteering
    • Corporate social responsibility contributions

As an example project, we will begin developing a hedge through the centre of Great Hollands to provide a wildlife corridor and improve green spaces.

Deliverables

We will:

  • support delivery of repair cafés by local volunteers
  • create an e-learning course for residents who contaminate their bins, helping them to understand recycling and waste disposal rules (stretch)
  • research trends in local littering patterns to identify litter reduction measures, in collaboration with Royal Holloway, University of London
  • develop our Biodiversity Net Gain habitat banks to offset local development
  • enhance our green spaces, for example by improvements to our Suitable Alternative Natural Greenspaces
  • expand our grazing scheme to improve habitats, and our work on managing invasive species
  • begin developing a new Rights of Way Improvement Plan to support walking, cycling, and biodiversity along rights of way
  • prepare for the introduction of kerbside glass recycling in 2027, including purchase of equipment
  • protect and strengthen habitats in line with the Biodiversity Action Plan, and make our parks more resilient to climate impacts
  • run a campaign of resident engagement to encourage the creation of habitats on private land, for example by building ponds (stretch)

Areas for development

Our areas for development are:

  • supporting wider community food growing and sharing, for example the development of allotment space and Community Supported Agriculture
  • developing the circular economy in Bracknell Forest, for example establishing a Library of Things

Aim 3: engaging and empowering communities

Project: healthy and sustainable food

We will deliver a collaborative programme of resident and organisational engagement on healthy and sustainable food. This builds on the initial programme in the 2025 to 2026 financial year. 

This may include:

  • developing an organisational accreditation scheme
  • local food partnerships
  • engagement with school caterers
  • an engagement campaign or cooking classes for residents

Project: supporting the further development of the BFCCA

We will support Bracknell Forest Community Climate Action (BFCCA) to further develop its capacity, working with locality to deliver a package of support covering:

  • digital infrastructure and communications support
  • organisational development and volunteer recruitment support
  • a sustainability champions programme, training volunteers to engage others and provide support, for example with energy saving

Deliverables

We will:

  • support capacity-building within the borough for community groups to pave the way for their expansion into community energy
  • conduct targeted engagement with and provide consultancy support for landlords and estate agents, linking to upcoming changes to Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (stretch)

Business as usual

We will:

Areas for development

Our areas for development are:

  • working with public-facing businesses, tradespeople and sports clubs to engage people on climate action in their daily lives
  • investigating opportunities created by neighbourhood working in the wider organisation and public sector
  • incentivising climate-positive behaviour where appropriate
  • strategic and targeted engagement with residents
  • creating a welcome pack for people moving into homes in the borough

Aim 4: preparing for climate impacts 

A. On the council

Project: climate change risk assessment and mitigation plan for the council

We will use the resources created in Phase 1 to engage teams across the council and identify climate-related risks and ways to mitigate them. 

We will also agree planned actions for future years to address these risks.

Areas for development

Our area for development is to work with suppliers and getting arrangements in place to mitigate climate risks.

B. On the Borough

Deliverables

We will:

  • create a climate risk assessment tool for the borough, supporting engagement and consultancy activities
  • work with parish and town councils on emergency plans, and work with landowners to make sure we are ready to respond to wildfires in the borough if they occur
  • deliver a workshop for local charities focused on climate impacts and risk assessment, in collaboration with Involve and Wokingham Borough Council (stretch)
  • deliver or support a workshop with early years providers on climate adaptation and mitigation, with a focus on the vulnerability of young children to extreme weather (stretch)
  • issue an updated Flood Risk Management Strategy which will improve our ability to address flood risk across the borough

Areas for development

Our areas for development are:

  • delivering heat resilience workshops and interventions (such as green infrastructure) in Bracknell Forest schools
  • creating “cool routes” for active travel in hot weather using green infrastructure
  • providing targeted support for vulnerable residents to help them stay safe in extreme weather

Aim 5: supporting the green economy

Major project: engaging, recognising and advising businesses

We will launch the Bracknell Forest Climate Pledge for businesses and organisations, currently under development with local charity Ethical Reading, and associated business resources

We will also develop a corporate social responsibility service for climate action, where local businesses and organisations can provide time, skills or money to support climate activities.

These could include sponsorship benefits or beyond value chain mitigation opportunities, which help businesses meet science-based target commitments by supporting emissions reductions elsewhere

We are going to launch a paid-for advisory service for local businesses and organisations, offering services such as:

  • ­climate strategy development and action planning
  • climate risk assessment and mitigation
  • carbon literacy training
  • climate engagement, events and talks
  • desktop studies to support decarbonisation and energy saving across domestic and non-domestic building portfolios

Deliverables

We will:

  • encourage Bracknell Forest residents using the Youth Employment Hub or taking part in the local Connect to Work scheme to consider green skills based employment or training
  • produce a brochure highlighting Bracknell Forest as an attractive location for green business investment, and promote climate action at inward investment events (stretch)
  • organise a green work experience scheme for secondary school and college pupils, matching them to local employers (stretch)

Areas for development

Our areas for development are:

  • looking at opportunities to support and develop the local supply chain for retrofit
  • looking at further opportunities to promote green careers and support green skills development
  • creating a green business award to recognise outstanding businesses in the climate action space
  • supporting joint procurement processes to support local businesses with decarbonisation
  • supporting green entrepreneurship

Enablers

Enabler 1: organisational capacity and skills

Deliverables

We will develop a climate development programme for councillors, including consideration of the needs of overview and scrutiny members and councillors in the leadership programme.

Business as usual

We will:

  • deliver carbon literacy training for officers across the council, especially managers, to continue embedding climate action in every service
  • run the Officer Climate Network, which gives staff across the organisation a chance to connect, learn and collaborate in an informal setting
  • support the Climate Change Officers Board, which brings together senior officers to provide governance and embed climate action across the organisation
  • provide support for use of the integrated impact assessment tool as part of project development and governance and budgeting processes

Enabler 2: funding

Major project: deliver a Local Climate Bond

We will create a package of interventions which will deliver a return on investment. These will be funded through issuing a Local Climate Bond for residents to invest in. 

This will include looking at options to invest in: 

  • small-scale solar installations
  • batteries
  • solar canopies
  • EV charging

Business as usual

We will:

  • maintain our pipeline of suitable projects
  • regularly cross-reference with available grants
  • apply for funding
  • encourage others to do likewise

Areas for development

Exploring opportunities for public-private partnerships and other innovative financing and delivery models.

Enabler 3: partnerships

Major project: collaboration across the Thames Valley

We will provide support and momentum for development of arrangements to collaborate on climate change and prepare for devolution. This will include:

  • expanding our partnerships with neighbouring local authorities
  • deepening collaboration across Berkshire, for example in relation to community energy
  • creating space for collaboration and preparing for devolution at Thames Valley scale

Project: parish and town council engagement

We will engage each of the 6 parish and town councils to pave the way for deeper collaboration and identify opportunities.

Deliverables

Deliver a second round of the Climate Action Grant scheme, focusing on key priorities such as a just transition, engaging marginalised groups, community groups, community energy or active travel (stretch).

Business as usual

We will:

  • support and sustain the momentum of the refreshed Joint Climate Action Board, which now brings together key strategic stakeholders from around the borough
  • work with external partners such as the Greater South East Net Zero Hub and APSE Energy

Enabler 4: research and data

Deliverables

We will:

  • use anonymised postcode-level data to map distances between pupils’ homes and their schools, helping to design effective active travel interventions
  • produce an updated guide to research topics linked to the Action Plan to support collaboration with universities
  • produce an expanded emissions footprint for the council, systematically covering scope 3 emissions for the first time

Business as usual

We will: