Helping North Tyneside Council to deliver energy policy

North Tyneside Council serves a large geographic area and like any public body has obligations to meet challenging carbon-reduction targets set by central Government.

North Tyneside Council takes sustainability very seriously and having been set carbon-reduction targets in their own workplaces, and in the communities they serve, they needed specialist advice to understand what could be done and how best to do it.

Having worked with North Tyneside Council on performance management systems and to produce energy audits tadea were delighted to be invited to be part of the Green North Tyneside Partnership (previously known as the Sustainable Communities and Neighbourhoods Partnership). This partnership of the Council, tadea, Friends of the Earth, local village associations and others, was created to consider the green issues faced by the Council and to contribute to its energy policy. As a key member we assumed responsibility to encourage communities to be more actively involved with climate change issues and sustainability. We achieved this by playing a prominent role in green events, talking directly to local residents and associations, providing facts and figures to the Council and presenting workshops and education sessions. This was a two-way conversation where not only did we talk with audiences, but listened to what they had to say so it could be fed in to on-going policy and strategy work.

Joint working with tadea, the Council, and the other organisations, has meant we’ve all been able to share knowledge and best practice. This has benefited all involved by helping to shape policy development in a way that’s inclusive and gives the Council and its community a clear road-map to achieve carbon-reduction targets.

Tony Turnbull from North Tyneside Council said “tadea are really good at engaging with us and the wider community to help us to deliver any sustainability or climate change strategy. We’ve worked with them for many years and value their independent helpful approach.”