Wakefield care home celebrate new eco-friendly initiatives

HC-One’s Snapethorpe Hall Care Home, in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, have celebrated Earth Day on April 22, 2024, by highlighting several of its eco-friendly projects.

The initiatives include adding solar panels to the home’s roof to facilitate renewable energy; installing electric vehicle (EV) charging points to support sustainable transportation; decarbonising the home by removing gas appliances from the kitchen; and replacing gas tumble dryers with innovative air source heat pump dryers.

Further measures will include the addition of new boilers and a modern LED lighting system to aid energy efficiency, and the implementation of enhanced loft insulation and lagging within the plant room as well as new window seals to further reduce heat loss following on from a full thermal imaging survey of the building. Throughout 2024, Snapethorpe Hall will continue to implement measures to reduce their impact on the environment.

Over recent months, HC-One’s wider sustainability focused projects have included joining forces with its print suppliers MT Print and Premier to support the Woodland Trust in the creation of a new woodland near The Mersey Forest in North Cheshire.

100 people from companies across the UK planted over 3,000 native saplings to aid woodland creation and enhance biodiversity.

In October 2023, HC-One partnered Hey Girls – an award-winning period product social enterprise – to support colleagues across its homes and Darlington support office, with environmentally friendly disposable and reusable period products.

In March 2024, HC-One homes (including Snapethorpe Hall) supported the 2024 Food Waste Action Week (18 – 24 March). There are also ongoing commitments by the care provider to reduce the levels of food waste across all of its care homes. HC-One also provides residents (with dietary preferences) a choice of nutritious vegetarian and vegan meals to further reduce the organisation’s environmental impact.

Gary Reed, Director of Property at HC-One, commented:

“I am excited about HC-One’s future as we incorporate more sustainable initiatives across our care homes. We are looking to invest in a mix of proven technology alongside innovation across our care homes to help us move towards achieving Net Zero Carbon.”

Kate Ward, Head of Procurement at HC-One, said:

“We are committed to the long-term sustainability of our business operations and 2024 will see us roll-out further green initiatives. We continue to work collaboratively with our supply chain towards our wider sustainability objectives and are a proud member of the Social Care Sustainability Alliance.”