Work is ongoing across all topic areas and the agreed HCCSP Strategic Action Plans. HCCSP is also the lead partnership organisation through which Hertfordshire Growth Board (HGB) fulfils its Sustainable County mission.
We release annual performance reports which highlight progress and achievements to date:
Recent HCCSP highlights, progress and achievements include:
- Adaptation – training provided for officers, councillors, and businesses; establishment of climate adaptation working group; work on developing climate change risk assessment/s across and between all Hertfordshire local authorities.
- Behaviour Change – collaborative marketing and training provided for key events and activations; development of communications officer working groups; strategic overview of regional activity to align messages to audiences, particularly on domestic building retrofit.
- Biodiversity – collaborative procurement of Hertfordshire-wide Biodiversity Baseline; coordinated communications and officer support on Biodiversity Net Gain, Local Nature Recovery Strategy and Biodiversity Duty; working to align policies on pesticides, mowing and green space management; coordinated rollout of new trees for planting, focusing on wards with less than 15% canopy cover; supporting of alignment of county-wide engagement with farming.
- Carbon reduction – assisted coordination of Hertfordshire-wide Solar Together group buying scheme for residents and businesses, leveraging over £12million investment in renewables in Year One; launched HEAT App for residents through partnership with Energy Savings Trust; working to coordinate planning regulations; working to coordinate energy efficiency measures of public buildings through collaborative procurement; working to develop Hertfordshire Area Energy Plan.
- Transport – working to align low-emission-friendly licensing policies for hackney carriages and private hire vehicles; working to align EV infrastructure funding, rollout, and installation; interventions on active travel, air quality, and idling action.
- Water – collaborative relationships with key stakeholders; amplification of campaigns and supporting regional initiatives; development of water-stewardship-focused planning policies.
We will keep this page updated, but please use the contact form to get in touch and for the latest updates and information.
Governance and finance
HCCSP has a strategic remit. Its overarching mission is to be the lead partnership organisation through which Hertfordshire Growth Board (HGB) fulfils its Sustainable County mission and through which Hertfordshire’s local authorities and the Hertfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) work collaboratively on environmental, climate change and wider sustainability issues. HCCSP also supports the development and delivery of activities related to the Regional Climate Change Forum (RCCF) through the East of England Local Government Association.
HCCSP is funded through contributions from our partners and regularly applies for collaborative funding to supplement this budget. Alignment, collaboration and resource efficiencies have helped to:
- Consider aligned policies on procurement, planning, licensing, and finance
- Facilitate climate training for councillors, planning and sustainability officers and community advocates
- embed regional relationships with University of Hertfordshire and NHS, Integrated Care Service and Regional Climate Change Forum, as well as local charities, community groups, NGOs and similar.
HCCSP also supports Hertfordshire-wide initiatives covering food and waste (through Herts Waste Partnership).
The Partnership supports WasteAware policies and campaigns on recycling and waste reduction, including food waste, clothing swaps, waste-free menstruation supplies, reusable nappies, and growing your own food amongst others.
Find out more about WasteAware
Retrofit & Behaviour Change
We asked
80% of houses that will exist in 2050 have already been built but, with the oldest building stock in the world, England’s homes are not currently fit for a safe, healthy and comfortable future. Over 60% of domestic EPCs in Hertfordshire are D or below and more than 60,000 homes are living in fuel poverty.
HCCSP has explored the barriers home-owners face to retrofitting their home to make them more energy efficient. Whilst this is an area over which the Council has limited leverage, research indicates that residents are concerned about their fuel bills, the warmth and comfort of their homes and about the climate emergency. Residents are also keen to investigate a range of retrofit interventions, but there is currently a lack of action at the speed needed to meet our health, wellbeing and sustainability ambitions. The aim of the project was to explore the principal barriers to retrofitting privately owned housing in Hertfordshire and consider potential options for overcoming these.
You said
HCCSP shared a survey for Hertfordshire homeowners between 19 Jan to 11 February 2024 and received 1,267 responses from domestic homeowners. This research confirmed that there is a market for retrofit in Hertfordshire, but many residents don’t know where to start, who to trust, or how to coordinate work. Download the full Retrofit & Behaviour Change Survey Results report.
We did
The evidence gathered from this survey will feed into a Retrofit Strategy which will facilitate retrofitting housing in Hertfordshire in response to both the climate emergency and cost of living crisis.
A Hertfordshire-wide Retrofit Steering Group is being convened (Q1 24/25) and a Retrofit Strategy will be developed (Q3 24/25) to capture, support and progress all elements of building retrofit currently progressing across the county, to include public and private, commercial and domestic buildings, skills and trades, supply and demand. Guidance is being produced for domestic retrofit which will be shared as a dedicated page on the HCCSP website.
Retrofit Resources
While bespoke Hertfordshire resources are in development, there are many credible sources of information, guidance and recommendations currently available in the public domain.
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