Utilise Plus Event Report: Energy Saving Workshop in Brighton

The Sustainable Business Partnership CIC welcomed delegates to Brighton on 16th November for an Energy Saving Workshop. These half-day workshops are interactive sessions in which organisations produce bespoke action plans tailored to their particular needs.

The group outlined their energy saving objectives. Some were specific, such as dealing with ineffective night storage heating, while others wanted to expand their knowledge of energy saving measures more generally. Once objectives had been outlined, delegates identified the barriers to achieving them. These included difficulties with gaining support from managers and colleagues, issues around timing energy saving projects so that they don’t interrupt business operations, as well as a lack of funding.

Delivered by the Sustainable Business Partnership’s Louise Downey, the workshop consisted of games, discussions and practical exercises. A variety of topics were covered, including the business case for saving energy, how to understand bills and calculate savings, engaging with stakeholders, what to look out for when conducting a site walk-around, and finally how to put a plan of action into practice.

Participants developed their own detailed action plans to take forward after the workshop and left feeling confident that they could now begin to tackle the obstacles they face in their organisations and start saving energy! Ann Tizzard of St Richard’s Community Centre told us that “this session has empowered me”. John Rogers of the Brighton Dome commented on the “excellent presentation”, while Matt Mills of Community Base called the workshop a “good opportunity to discuss energy use and waste in a supportive environment”.

Delegates will receive further support from the Sustainable Business Partnership to guide them throughout their energy saving journeys. This Energy Saving Workshop was part of our new Utilise Plus programme, fully-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

At the Sustainable Business Partnership, we’re always on the lookout for interesting venues and passionate speakers who are keen to share their knowledge. If you’d like to work with us, please get in touch.