A West Country company has been handed the task of overseeing a £70 billion contract, reports CornwallLive. The Place Group will help deliver the country's transition to Net Zero, the target of offsetting greenhouse gases produced in the UK by reducing emissions.
The small organisation, based at The Regent, Chapel Street in Penzance, Cornwall, is a "specialist consulting, project management and research company with 18 years’ experience in the field of education".
They will "control, manage and deliver" the public sector transition to Net Zero and will oversee the framework for services, products, solutions and support for Everything Net Zero.
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Its website states: "We have a strong track record of developing winning free school applications and have successfully opened over 100 new schools for clients and trusts across the country. Trusts and schools will be developing their environment strategies ready to meet decarbonisation targets and reach net zero carbon across their estates by 2030 and longer term 2050 under the Climate Change Act.
"Place Group provides an end-to-end solution to enable trusts and schools to meet their net zero vision objectives efficiently and effectively through a phased programme approach. This approach, or ‘journey’, is underpinned by our technical and programme management expertise in the educational built environment space, and by our estates supply chain vehicle."
The company has net assets of £344,417 under the directorship of Claire Delaney and Simon James.
The East of England Broadband Network (E2BN), the contracting authority, is putting in place a framework agreement for use by UK public sector bodies, including schools, colleges and universities, NHS organisations, local authorities, fire and police services, and more.
The Place Group won the four-year contract to facilitate the framework for such areas as reducing all emissions especially carbon, increasing the use of sustainable resources, improving recycling, exploiting greener technologies and innovation, greener use of water, electricity, gas, oils, and other fuels including hydrogen, battery and nuclear, and greener transportation. It will also access financing, grants and awards to deliver a "comprehensive greener strategy to meet the needs of education, central and local government and other public sector and associated organisations".
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The successful bidder was "expected to demonstrate they can impartially control, manage and deliver against the full range of required areas and to maintain and integrate such competing sub-contractors as necessary to ensure choice and flexibility in each category, best value and seamless interoperability. At all times choice, service and cost are of vital importance".
The Government’s long-awaited strategy for reaching net zero emissions was revealed last October, with ministers saying it would create up to 440,000 jobs and “unlock” £90bn in investment in the next decade, most of it from private sector companies.
The plan involves an expansion of electric vehicles, including increasing the network of charging points, and further growth of offshore wind, as well as investments in new technologies such as hydrogen and sustainable aviation fuel and £120m towards at least one new nuclear power station. Households will benefit from grants to install low-carbon heat pumps as part of a £3.9bn plan for decarbonising heat and buildings, including a £450m three-year boiler upgrade scheme.
However, last week, the high court ordered the Government to outline exactly how its net zero policies will achieve emissions targets, after a legal challenge from environmental groups.
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