Greener NHS

In October 2020, the NHS became the world’s first health service to commit to reaching carbon net zero, Thanks to NHS people, partners, and suppliers, we’re already on the way to building a greener NHS. One year on from setting out these targets, the NHS has reduced its emissions equivalent to powering 1.1 million homes annually. Together, we can achieve even more.

Climate change poses a major threat to our health as well as our planet. The environment is changing, that change is accelerating, and this has direct and immediate consequences for our patients, the public and the NHS.

Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board (ICB) is committed in delivering the NHS Green Plan and we are absolutely focused on reducing our carbon footprint and delivering our services sustainably.

We recognise that our sustainability journey will change our ways of working, enabling us to continue to make a positive impact environmentally, socially, and financially. In doing so, we will ensure the ICB is fit for the future and that it supports the long-term wellbeing of our staff, local communities, and the wider communities we serve.

We are focussed on deepening the relationship in many areas between the NHS, local councils and other important strategic partners such as the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector. They have developed better and more convenient services, invested in keeping people healthy and out of hospital and set shared priorities for the future.

We have already started our green journey and are proud to have achieved the following:

• The development of our estates strategy which has seen us rationalise and consolidate our use of buildings.
• Incorporating mandatory carbon literacy training across our ICB and ICS teams.
• The uptake in digital tools, which has enabled us to adopt highly agile ways of working across all teams and services.
• Having weekly NHS Greener focus group with an expert team to work toward our end goals.
• Incorporating fully recyclable bins within our sites and going fully green in our sites forbidding the use of single plastic use items such as cups and cutlery.

These initiatives have not only reduced our carbon footprint but also prompted behaviour changes which are important in moving forward in our delivery of a net zero health service.

We know we have a significant programme of work ahead of us to deliver a net zero carbon future, but we start from solid foundations and by working collaboratively with all partners and harnessing the collective endeavours of all our colleagues, we are confident we will achieve our ambitions.

You can view and download the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Green Plan below: