Adult Social Care Climate & Environment Framework

Adult Social Care are supporting Essex to be climate resilient and reach. We are to aligning our market shaping strategy with our Everyone’s Essex corporate strategic aim of creating a high-quality environment. This will ensure that climate considerations are embedded into our strategic planning and operational activity. By 2030 Adult Social Care must be contributing to the reduction of our carbon footprint and emissions whilst maintaining and improving the standard of quality of care and the environment for our adults and families. By 2050, Adult Social Care services in Essex must be net zero.

The key objectives are:

• To reduce the carbon footprint by 50 per cent by 2030 across adult social care, and to be fully net zero by 2050.
• Achieve net zero emissions from transport across adult social care by 2040
• To reduce the use of fossil-fuel derived energy within the service by 25 per cent by 2030
• 30 per cent of all land in the adult social care estate will enhance biodiversity and the natural environment by creating natural green infrastructure such as rain gardens, green roofs and planting trees.
• All new homes and all new commercial buildings granted planning permissions to be carbon zero by 2025
• Ensure that 65 per cent of waste generated by the service is recycled by 2035, and all food waste is recycled or put to beneficial use by 2025.
• To ensure 60 per cent of all services and providers providing social care have a carbon reduction plan across their services or business by 2025, and 100 per cent have a plan in place by 2030.
• Ensure social care providers or services that have a carbon footprint and emission plan are delivering towards their plan.
• To ensure 50 per cent of providers working for adult social care or with adults that require social care services are carbon literacy trained by 2025, and 100 per cent are trained by 2030
• To ensure 50 per cent of carers are carbon literacy trained by 2025, and 100 per cent are trained by 2030.

The key priorities to meet our climate objectives:

• Develop a baseline of the adult social care carbon footprint and emissions across all adult social care services
• Raise awareness, train and educate our social care providers on the importance of our climate and environment strategy and support to help identify areas of improvement to aid the reduction in the carbon footprint or
• Develop a centre of excellence for our climate agenda in Adult Social Care to share learning and support best practice
• Understand the financial impact of implementing climate change initiatives across our adult social care market and support the affordability of change within our market, driving early adoption of cost saving measures such as energy efficiency and waste reduction.
• Review our commissioning intentions for future tenders and contracts to shape local, community lead services that support the outcomes of our adults, providers and carers to work towards a zero carbon footprint.
• Explore funding opportunities for climate initiatives
• Review the impact on adult social care of escalating climate risks such as extreme weather, flooding, water scarcity, overheating, supply chain disruption and new diseases, with a view to building greater resilience to an already changing climate.