London Councils has announced that its Low Carbon Development Toolkit was recognised at the 2024 Planning Awards, as it supports work to address climate change.
The toolkit was developed in collaboration with the London Borough of Hackney, and helps planning teams to as they develop low-carbon buildings and infrastructure, whilst also supporting innovation. Policy and sustainability officers from across local government helped with the development of the toolkit which, according to London Councils, “embodies a collective response from London borough.”
Thirteen documents come within the toolkit, offering advice, guidance and practical steps to take as councils work to support the development and implementation of low-carbon policies. Councils will be able to use the toolkit in a range of ways, including:
- Accessing guidance from Westminster
- Measuring different aspects of sustainability policies through key performance indicators
- Tracking carbon offset payments
A link is also included that points councils to advice on what best practice within zero carbon planning looks like, and how using best practice can support the achievement of zero carbon.
Alongside the advice, councils can use practical tools such as text that can be used to create an online questionnaire on low carbon, zero carbon, and the climate emergency, which can then inform where training is needed to upskill teams.
Within London Councils, the lead boroughs for Low Carbon Development are Hackney and Haringey, with those two councils offering examples of sustainability conditions alongside the City of London, and Westminster. Development of the toolkit came as part of London Councils’ Low Carbon Development programme, which aims to ‘secure low carbon buildings and infrastructure via borough planning’ by 2030.
In the announcement of the toolkit’s recognition, London Councils said that “the award is a recognition of local government’s efforts to advance low carbon development.”
Image credit: iStock
