Last year 66% of churches in our diocese completed the Energy Footprint Tool (EFT) to help them understand their carbon footprint and heating needs. This year, the Tool opened on 13 January and so far just 11% of churches have taken up the opportunity.
As well as helping churches calculate their energy consumption and carbon footprint, the EFT returns from previous years have been helping the diocesan Net Zero Carbon lead plan how best to support churches looking to reduce their emissions and save money on their energy bills. Churches have until 30 June to use the Tool and it’s helpful if this can be done every year.
Our Net Zero Carbon Regional Programme Manager, Lee Westcott said:
“We are supporting all churches with guidance and helpful spreadsheet resources for recording energy bill information. Providing support for churches in the Diocese to become energy efficient and save on their bills is a key long-term goal in our Net Zero Carbon commitment, and one of the best ways to start is by understanding energy usage and emissions using tools like the EFT. The EFT is quick and simple to complete and can be found on the Parish Returns dashboard.
“I can see from previous returns that 30% of churches in the Diocese only use electricity to get their energy needs. By using or switching to a sustainable energy tariff, these churches have already heavily reduced their carbon emissions and are well on their journey to being Net Zero Carbon. There is still a lot of work to do for parishes across the Diocese and I hope to help and support them become Net Zero Carbon and save money. A great way to start is by filling in the EFT and understanding your energy consumption and future needs”
If you would like to see some guidance or discuss completing the EFT, please take time to watch the below video or make contact with the church buildings team.
