NGH achieves a green award for its commitment to sustainability

Northampton General Hospital has achieved a Green Accreditation with the national Investors in the Environment (iiE) scheme for the way it is working to reduce its carbon emissions and waste.

Achieving a Green Accreditation means the hospital has demonstrated it is focused on sustainable development and carbon emission reduction and is committed to finding ways to achieve these goals.

Accreditation also means the Trust has demonstrated continual improvement and delivered a minimum of 2% efficiency improvements year-on-year.

The hospital’s environmental challenge is significant with its 40-acre site having buildings from multiple eras dating back to its opening on its current site in 1793.

Things the hospital has done which were mentioned as strong evidence in the iiE audit included:

• Proactive management of carbon reductions across the use of electricity, gas, water, waste, vehicle use and anaesthetic gases
• Running initiatives to reduce clinical and food waste, introducing low water use toilets and the using less disposable (and more reusable) items in surgery
• Monthly newsletters and screensavers promoting environmental awareness
• Encouragement of re-use of resources through the Warp It platform – an online digital resource which helps to distribute reuse and recycle surplus furniture, equipment and stationery
• Engagement of staff through the Green Team Challenge showing annual environmental, financial and time savings
• Establishing a Sustainable Development Committee with representatives from across the organisation that meets quarterly
• Having a Green Plan from 2022 -2025 on how it is going to reduce its environmental impact

The hospital was audited in September and in order to achieve the accreditation it had to demonstrate progress across five domains; environmental policy, resource management and monitoring, progress against targets, plans include reference to social and environmental considerations and communication.

NGH’s Director of Facilities and Estates, Paul Shead, said: “I am delighted that the work done by our teams has been recognised at a national level with this award.

“We hope it shows the commitment our Trust, and our NHS Group, in working together to reduce our carbon footprint, reduce waste, and to make our organisations sustainable into the future.

“A lot of work has been undertaken across the Trust over the last few years to address these matters and, while this is an ongoing journey, the accreditation is one of the ways that we can show we are making progress.”

Ongoing sustainability work includes:

• Replacing the hospital’s steam boilers and installing heat pumps and solar panels which should help it reduce its carbon footprint by 3,445 tonnes a year. The Trust is using Government funding as part of national public sector decarbonisation schemes
• Successfully removing hospital’s use of the anaesthetic gas a year ahead of NHS targets. As well as saving money this has also offset the hospital’s impact on the environment by 500 tonnes of CO2e
• The Hand Therapy Team’s Green Team project shortlisted in the HSJ Awards Net Zero Category
• Promoting the use of reusable nappies to new parents
• NHS first decontamination trials using UV light