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NCH&C launches its first Green Plan on Clean Air Day 2022

We're supporting the NHS to reach net zero by 2040.

Norfolk Community Health & Care NHS Trust launches its first-ever Green Plan today to coincide with Clean Air Day.

This three-year plan outlines how NCH&C intends to step up its commitment to reducing carbon emissions, while continuing to provide outstanding community healthcare.

Infographic image summarising NCH&C's three-year Green Plan

The Green Plan defines how the trust will reduce the carbon emissions associated with the goods and services it procures, the medicines it supplies, its travel arrangements, and the way its estates and facilities are managed. The strategy also outlines how the proposed sustainability measures will impact staff, and how they can get involved to support the plan.

Click here to read the Green Plan in full.

NCH&C is not the only NHS trust using Clean Air Day to launch its Green Plan. The NHS Long-Term Plan mandates that all NHS trust must now have their own sustainability plans. The Norfolk & Waveney Integrated Care System Green Plan will be published later this summer.

The causes of climate change and air pollution are closely linked: working towards a greener NHS will naturally make our air cleaner and safer. According to the national Greener NHS campaign, air pollution causes 36,000 deaths annually, with spikes in hospital admissions on high-pollution days. Action on climate change is essential for the health of our patients, as well as the planet.

John Webster, Deputy CEO and Director of Strategy & Transformation at NCH&C, shared his support for the launch of the trust’s Green Plan:

“Managing our environmental impact is now an operational priority for NCH&C. It’s clear that reducing our carbon emissions is not just an act of environmental responsibility: it is vital in protecting the health of our patients and wider communities.

“As Sponsor for the Green Plan and Chair of the trust’s Sustainable Development Group, I am committed to ensuring that the trust does everything it can to help the NHS become the first net-zero national health service by 2040. NCH&C has always been a forward-thinking and community-minded trust, so I look forward to seeing how our organisation will drive change to meet its green objectives.”

Stephen Collman, CEO at NCH&C, also shared his commitment to the trust’s environmental agenda:

“The creation of the trust’s first Green Plan is a significant milestone in our sustainability journey. However, there is still much work to be done. The impact of climate change is a global public health concern, and I know our patients and stakeholders are rightfully interested in NCH&C’s action plans.

“NCH&C’s Green Plan is publicly available, to ensure we remain proactive, transparent, and accountable on our climate action. We will also be providing regular updates on our progress in line with our new environmental strategy.”

If you have any questions about the contents of the Green Plan, or an idea for how NCH&C can operate more sustainably, please email sustainability@nchc.nhs.uk.