SSE targets 90 per cent carbon reductions across London school trust

Funded through the UK government's Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS), SSE said the £14.3m project will overhaul heating systems, building controls, and electrical infrastructure across buildings in South London and Kent.

According to the energy supplier, the initiative is forecast to reduce Harris Federation’s collective emissions by over 38,000 tonnes of CO2, which they said is the equivalent of planting 1.73m trees.

Upgrades will include replacing gas boilers with energy-efficient air source heat pumps, installing advanced building energy management systems, and upgrading ageing electrical infrastructure. Renewable energy technologies will also be incorporated where 'feasible.'

In addition to the environmental benefits, the project is expected to significantly reduce energy costs for the academies over its 20-year course.

In a statement, business director at SSE Energy Solutions’ Smart Buildings, Grant Widlake, said: “At SSE Energy Solutions, we’re committed to partnering with all our business customers to deliver bespoke solutions enabling them to reduce their energy consumption, emissions, and costs. Reducing emissions from non-domestic buildings is critical to accelerating the UK's transition to Net Zero and as a dedicated business energy supplier, this is a key focus for our business.

“This project with Harris Federation exemplifies our approach to decarbonising buildings - overlaying effective building controls with other solutions like air source heat pumps, solar PV, and battery storage to create substantial emissions reductions.

“Our team are experts in conceptualising and delivering low-carbon retrofits across the public and private sectors and want to help many other organisations like the Harris Federation benefit from the opportunities of a low-carbon building estate.”

SSE said this project aligns with its Net Zero Acceleration Plan – the company said it has increased clean energy investments by 65 per cent to a total of £20.5bn by 2027 in the UK and Ireland, and is spending £10m per day to establish the low-carbon infrastructure that the UK needs for its net zero transition.

Tom Webster, director of Estates and Commercial at the Harris Federation, said: “The grant we have received from the Public Sector Decarbonisation scheme is a win-win, enabling us to make significant savings over time and thus plough more of our money directly into children’s education, whilst also playing our part in delivering a net zero future.”