We've won an industry award for our sustainability
We'll continue to create a sustainable Society for all.
We are delighted to share some exciting news! We’ve won the Retail Industry Awards category for Most sustainable retailer initiative of the year 2024.
The ceremony was held on the 18th September, at The Brewery, London, where we accepted the award in front of some of the industry’s finest retailers.
The award was judged by a panel made up of retailers, ex-retailers, industry experts, analysts and sector leaders, who scrutinised submissions bringing their own industry knowledge to bear on the decisions.
Our submission focussed on our green energy self-sufficiency initiative which is rolling out solar panel installations across our retail and funeral sites. This initiative enables us to embrace renewable energy, reduce environmental impact and enhance our operational efficiency.
Our green energy self-sufficiency initiative is rooted in the co-operative values of self-sufficiency and self-responsibility and reflects our dedication to creating a sustainable Society for all.
The initial phases of the delivery programme took place in 2023-24 alongside our partner, the award-winning solar energy specialists, SolPV who were instrumental in facilitating the rapid rollout of our solar panel plan.
Looking to the future, we have a comprehensive strategy to advance our sustainability efforts and move closer to achieving 100% energy self-sufficiency.
Our plans incorporate a variety of approaches including an energy management system, air source heat pumps at funeral and retail sites, the implementation of integral freezer replacements, refrigerant gas swap-outs, plus lighting sensors and LED upgrades to enable us to build on our energy saving and carbon reduction.
Cost savings generated from the solar panel initiative will be reinvested into researching new sustainable energy methods, store maintenance and improvements for our Members, ongoing colleague welfare and community initiatives.
Thank you to everyone who made this award success possible. We'll continue to create a sustainable Society for all.