SMART objectives – Green Plan

Objectives for each of our 10 focus areas
Focus area Objective Specific Measurable Assignable Realistic Time Baseline
Workforce and leadership Cultivate a culture of sustainability within the Trust, through comprehensive training, leadership development, and active engagement in carbon reduction initiatives, ensuring all staff are empowered to contribute to net zero goals Introduce board level training 100% of board members to attend training Green Plan SRO Subject to small investment End of 2025 No training delivered to date
Introduce green champions Identify >25 green champions Head of Sustainability Dependent on strong engagement Mid 2026 Currently zero green champions
Identify sustainability training gaps/ opportunities and implement where applicable across Trust – Review and roll out NZ training Completion of review and roll out of training Head of Sustainability Subject to investment End of 2025 None
Increase comms for Green Plan Issue quarterly newsletter Head of Sustainability Comms and engagement support Following Green Plan approval None
Review of improvement methods and training to establish where sustainability can be incorporated Review undertaken Transformation and Improvement lead support End of 2026
Net zero clinical transformation Embed sustainability into clinical transformation by reducing emissions from clinical activity and redesigning care pathways through the principles of sustainable clinical practice, driven by clinical leadership, continuous improvement, and system-wide collaboration to deliver high-quality, low-carbon care Recruit a clinical lead Clinical lead in post Green Plan SRO Investment for 0.5 PA required End of 2025 No clinical lead in post
Introduce net zero clinical transformation group with representation from each CSU Net zero clinical transformation group created with representation from each CSU Clinical lead Requires clinical lead recruitment End of 2025 No group yet exists
Redesign another care pathway Care pathway redesigned Clinical lead Requires clinical lead recruitment 2028 LKD pathway
Identify and implement switch from single-use to reusable medical items At least three high-volume single-use items switched Clinical lead Requires clinical lead recruitment 2028 No data on volume yet
Reduce expenditure on PPE 10% reduction in PPE procurement Clinical lead Requires clinical lead recruitment 2028 No baseline procurement data
Digital transformation Leverage digital technologies to enhance patient care, improve operational efficiency, and reduce carbon emissions through the integration of innovative digital solutions and robust data management, ensuring a sustainable and resilient healthcare system. Review procurement policy to promote sustainable purchases Development of Procurement Policy for Informatics which promotes energy efficient or low carbon purchases CDIO Requires Procurement input 2027 Presently no existing sustainable Procurement Policy in Informatics
Improve cooling efficiency in server rooms and removal of older hardware that are less tolerant of heat (e.g. EI PACS) Maintain server room temperatures within the recommended 19°C-23°C limit and promote free cooling. Complete the infrastructure replacement program in 2026 CDIO Needs careful monitoring during heatwave conditions. May require investment into hot/cold aisle containment and upgraded HVAC systems. 2028 Server rooms are currently chilled to 21°C.
Encourage behavioural change through PC power-downs to reduce operational energy consumption from IT equipment left on standby Develop communications strategy in support of switch-off campaign and carry out audit of computers left on standby CDIO Staff engagement / Investment into power management solutions such as Certero to support audit, with a potential ROI of 6 months 2027 No current communication campaign relating to switch-off strategy, however, PC Power downs already take place
Continue expansion of virtual wards and appointments Virtual wards to increase by 20% Transformation team / Clinical Lead Requires digital and clinical colleagues 2028 Capacity as of 23/01/25 – 80 patients
Implement automated hot-desking platform and space sensors Implementation of the platform across the Trust Estates Successful implementation End of 2026 Hot-desking trial implemented
Remove coloured printing No colour printing at the Trust CDIO Engagement with Digital; need exec lead End of 2025 N/A
Data purge to reduce backups Plan for regular deletion of old medical records CDIO Requires agreement on periodic deletion of records 2028 No data purge completed
Medicines Reduce the environment impact of medicines by embedding sustainability into prescribing practice, optimising use, minimising waste, and promoting low-carbon alternatives to deliver safer, lower carbon, and more effective patient care. Complete decommission of nitrous oxide infrastructure 0% piped nitrous oxide across Trust E&F Engagement with E&F End of 2026 Process started
Identify opportunities to decommission Entonox manifolds Feasibility report produced for the removal of Entonox manifolds Pharmacy Lead / Clinical Lead / E&F Clinical lead/E&F engagement End of 2026 No current feasibility assessment carried out for Entonox decommissioning
Increased usage of low carbon alternatives to Entonox Pharmacy Lead / Clinical Lead / E&F Clinical lead/E&F engagement End of 2027 No baseline data on procurement of low carbon alternatives i.e. methoxyflurane
Reduce medicines wastage – returns to pharmacy 10-20% increase in volume of returns recycled for patient use as opposed to disposed Pharmacy Lead Pharmacy lead engagement 2028 Baseline position to be determined
Increase use of oral antibiotics as alternative to IV 80% of eligible patients to receive antibiotics or pre-operative medicines from oral medication as opposed to intravenous in line with national guidance Pharmacy Lead Pharmacy lead engagement 2028 No baseline
Increase use of oral medication pre-operatively Clinical Lead Clinical Lead appointment 2027 0% of oral medication given at pre-op
To reduce emissions from MDI through adoption of DPI, soft mist inhalers (SMI) To target reduction of inhaler emissions by 50% through effective prescribing Pharmacy Lead Pharmacy Lead End of 2028 Baseline to be determined
Travel and transport To measure and reduce emissions associated with all staff and patient travel, as well as rationalising our fleet and journeys around our sites. Encourage active travel and low carbon options where possible, providing facilities and programmes to support this transition Develop a sustainable green travel plan Develop a sustainable green travel plan Head of Sustainability / Director of Estates and Facilities In line with NHS England guidance due soon End of 2026 No travel plan currently
Transition to zero-emissions fleet 100% fleet are zero emissions Deputy Director of Estates and Facilities Existing leases to be reviewed 2028 Presently only one electric vehicle within the Estate
Increase staff’s active travel Carry out annual travel surveys and target 15% increase in active travel by staff Head of Sustainability Staff engagement and infrastructure upgrades required 2025–2028 A staff travel survey has not recently been carried out to determine active travel uptake
Increase EV charging infrastructure Implement an Electric Vehicle Charging Point (EVCP) strategy which targets a minimum number of additional chargers c.25 Deputy Director of Estates and Facilities Investment required 2028 Type 2 EV chargers
Estates and facilities Operate an efficient estate with detailed understanding of our resource consumption and waste generation, delivering our plans to decarbonise and reduce waste. Improve the Lord Carter metric of utilisation of non-clinical space To increase to 65% Director of Estates and Facilities By 2030 51%
Implement projects based on our HDP to remove fossil fuels At least 1 per annum Director of Estates and Facilities Projects to be linked to Trust capital plan From 2026 to 2028 No projects currently
Increase renewable energy usage At least 3% energy from on-site renewable sources Head of Sustainability / Energy Manager 2028 Energy usage from renewables currently contributes to 0.5% of total energy consumption across the Trust
Reduce waste volumes Improve waste segregation ratios – targeting 20% HTI, 20% infectious, 60% offensive Head of Sustainability / Waste Manager 2028 Current segregation ratio for FY24-25 is 6% HTI,
61% infectious,
32% offensive and
1 % Pharmacy
Energy monitoring Ensure that at least 80% of our individual buildings are sub metered Head of Sustainability / Waste Manager Projects to be linked to Trust capital plan to maximise budget From 2026 to 2028 Individual buildings are largely not sub metered across the Trust
Reducing water consumption Identify opportunities for leak detection technology / alarms, low-flow fittings, direct flush toilets, or rainwater harvesting. Head of Sustainability / Waste Manager Projects to be linked to Trust capital plan to maximise budget From 2025 to 2028 No baseline position
Carbon footprint Recalculate carbon footprint to determine emissions across all applicable Scope 3 emissions sources Head of Sustainability / Energy Manager 2027 Scope 3 emissions reporting is presently limited
Ensure compliance with NHS standards for new buildings and refurbished projects All applicable projects to be compliant with NZBS and BREEAM Healthcare methodology, which targets “excellent” for new builds and “very good” for major refurbishments under HTM 07-07 Deputy Director of Estates – Capital & Strategic Immediately No baseline – new guidance
Air quality Ensure the Trust carries out periodic monitoring of internal and external air quality Net Zero Clinical Transformation Lead / Head of Sustainability Requires support from occupational health to ensure IAQ assessment End of 2026 No baseline position
Supply chain and procurement Provide information and training across the Trust to embed sustainability considerations into all our procurement decisions and business processes, from end users to board members. Reduce reliance on single-use products Engage with top 10 suppliers by spend to identify at least one single-use product that can be reduced or replaced Head of Sustainability May be challenging to measure 2028 Currently no supplier engagement carried out
Ensure compliance with the NHS Net Zero Roadmap By April 2027, 100% of new suppliers into the Trust will publicly report Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions Head of Procurement Will require dedicated supplier engagement and careful monitoring April 2027 At present only suppliers with a contract value above £5m are required to comply with the NHS Net Zero Roadmap
Roll-out sustainable procurement training >50 staff to complete sustainable procurement Head of Sustainability Requires training to be rolled out 2028 Zero for procurement
Inclusion of environmental considerations in procurement applications Amendment to SFIs Green Plan SRO / CFO Annual refresh – check timescales End of 2026 Standing Financial Instructions (SFIs) do not presently include environmental considerations
Continue roll out of digitised inventory management solution (SupplyX) Implement a digitised inventory management solution Procurement / Digital Requires investment and resource 2028 Currently in several departments
Food and nutrition Providing and promoting healthier and lower carbon food to staff and patients, working to quantify and then reduce our food waste. Reduce food waste Reduce to 3.5% of total waste Green Plan SRO Patient and staff comms required 2028 Food waste is presently 5% of total waste
Introduce seasonal ingredients as part of a digital menu that also provides meat-free options as a part of a nutritionally balanced catering service Introduction of a digital menu Green Plan SRO Collaboration with digital and catering End of 2025 No digital menu in place
Adaptation Understand the risks posed by climate change to both our infrastructure and clinical operations, implementing processes across the Trust to ensure the wellbeing of staff and patients. Create an adaptation plan linked to the green plan Adaptation plan created Director of Estates and Facilities/ Green Plan SRO Internal approvals Mid 2026/ End of 2026 No adaptation plan in place
Identification of flood, heat, drought and other risks Complete NHS climate change risk assessment tool Green Plan SRO Requires engagement with EPRR colleagues End of 2026 None carried out to date
Roll-out climate-specific adaptation training At least 100% of board members to have training Director of Estates and Facilities/ Green Plan SRO Time constraints and coordination End of 2026 No training currently in place
Biodiversity and green spaces Continue to maintain and improve our current green space, looking to identify opportunities for new spaces and enhance biodiversity on site. Identify and develop any spaces that could be turned into greener spaces or with more natural light e.g. yards behind Unwin Place Establishment of at least 2 new spaces on site Head of Sustainability Constrained site Mid 2027 The Trust has wild gardens at both hospital sites; these have been designed to encourage flora and wildlife – adjacent to B Block, Horton Wing at SLH, and the rear of Estates Offices at BRI
Identify opportunities to extend the no mow May and other initiatives currently on site Establishment of working group and run three programmes for biodiversity Head of Sustainability Constrained site End 2026 Two wildflower gardens on site and no mow May implemented
Establishment of green roofs on new builds/existing buildings At least one green roof/wall installed on site Head of Sustainability Challenges with existing structures; cost prohibitive End 2028 Presently no green roof or green walls across the Estate

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