To receive the above update.

The Energy Manager provided the Panel with a brief update on savings and progress made on reducing energy use. He stated that the competition on energy saving schools had ended and a prize awarded to the winner.

Energy monitoring data: Overall the data showed a total saving of 21% compared to the baseline year 2013/14. That meant that because the savings were likely to be maintained in March, that the saving target of 15% would be exceeded by at least 6%. The Energy Manager confirmed the good news on savings would be published in the Around the Royal Borough publication.

The energy Manager confirmed there had been a 22.5% energy decrease since the new LED street lighting scheme had been rolled out and completed.

The Energy Strategy that ran from 2014 – 2018 had now ended and so it was a good time to reflect on some of the key pieces of the energy and water saving work that had been carried out over the prior four years. The strategy started out with some work on gas, electric and water automatic metering. That was done to try and improve the accuracy of billing and to improve monitoring of the Council’s energy supplies. The Council was now in a good position to start a new strategy which would consolidate all the work done and that would improve for the future. Michael Potter, the Energy Manager added that as he was now leaving his post at the Council, it was a good opportunity to allow the new manager to take the new strategy forward.

The School Energy Competition ran from 23 April to 14 May and 20 maintained schools took part. The Mayor presented the prize to the winners, the Royal School. Oldfield Primary School were highly commended on the savings they had made. The Chairman stated the Royal School had said the weather had helped as they had taken classes outside which reduced their need to use energy.

Refill Scheme – the Energy Manager had received some information from City to Sea CIC about the scheme they ran. They were still not set up nationally and they did not have any posters or stickers for businesses windows but, they were gearing up to that. He added it was good to see residents leading the scheme by asking businesses if they could refill their bottles. There had been one resident very interested in water fountains being installed to refill bottles so the Energy Manager sent her the information he had and asked if she would go to businesses and ask them to sign up to the refill scheme. The residents contact details would be passed to Steph James, the Town Manager, to liaise over how best to approach local businesses.

Melissa, a local resident commented that she was starting discussions with local groups to try and remove plastics from the streets. She stated people used to be able to hand in bottles at local pubs and off licences and get refills. Supermarkets were now starting to offer similar schemes. But it was manufacturers that needed to be held accountable for producing so much plastic. The Head of Communities Enforcement and Partnerships stated that glass bottles were more efficient to recycle than to reuse them as they were. He suggested Melissa had discussions with the Waste Manager who would be interested to hear ideas on reducing waste/ the Head of Communities Enforcement and Partnerships added that 50% of what went into rubbish bins was recyclable and then 60% of that could be dealt with through existing systems.

The Energy Manager informed Members that the refill scheme had an app which showed where people could refill their bottles. He had also been looking at Council sites where refill points could be installed; however, sadly both cafes in the Town Hall and Maidenhead Library had closed. He added Maidenhead Library were installing a coffee machine and they also had a water cooler in situ. He had asked them to move it to a more prominent position. The Energy Manager was also looking to find out where other libraries had placed their water coolers.

Braywick Leisure Centre – the Energy Manager confirmed the solar panels on the roof had not been part of the original costings for the build of the leisure centre and that there was no funding for them in place as yet. He was looking for private funding from businesses or sponsorship. The Chairman stated the funding was a must as they were part of the project from the beginning. She added the lack of solar panels was raised prior to planning permission as the Panel had been adamant the leisure centre needed solar panels and it was cheaper to install them at the time of build than once construction had been completed. The Energy Manager confirmed planning permission was in place with solar panels but, they weren’t initially part of the leisure centre project. Councillor Sharp stated it was a very big disgrace and if the Council could not rely on its own people to ensure they were installed, how would that encourage other people and residents to install their own. The Council needed to lead by example. The Head of Communities Enforcement and Partnerships confirmed the additional costs for the solar panels were not part of the build design but, the capacity to install them was there. The Council needed to attract additional finding to incorporate the panels; while other energy efficiency measures had been incorporated into the scheme. The solar panels were not within the initial costings but were an additional cost. The Head of Communities Enforcement and Partnerships was unable to provide an answer as to why they were not part of the initial costs. The Chairman stated she remembered the solar panels being part of the design of the leisure centre so she would have a word with the Lead Member to see if any funding could be found.

The Energy Manager confirmed he had been talking to three companies that were putting together proposals; if no funding was forthcoming, a capital bid could be submitted. There were green funds and cooperative lending schemes that could be looked at. He added an EPC was required for a Feed in Tariff but the Council would not receive one until the building was complete. The Chairman stated it was an urgent item and it needed to be sorted.

Councillor Sharp stated three buildings stood out which had increased energy usage, the Guildhall had an increase in gas. The Energy Manager confirmed there was a problem with the controls and problem with the boilers. Councillor Sharp stated biomass boilers were very polluting, they produced similar levels of pollution as wood burners which London Councils were trying to ban. He added that the Oak Bridge Centre in Windsor also saw a big increase in energy use. The Energy Manager confirmed that had been flagged as a maintenance issue.

Councillor Sharp stated he was not happy the Council did not meter LED lighting. He had asked for a monthly report on how much the Council paid for street lighting compared with how many street lights were converted to LED. The Head of Communities Enforcement and Partnerships confirmed 14,000 lights were changed and the scheme to change them had been completed. He had a meeting with the agency that determined the cost per unit of street lighting but the figures had not yet been confirmed. He did not feel the Borough could change supplier as the unit price was set nationally.

Councillor Sharp explained to Members that he was looking for the television which showed how much energy the Borough had saved but, the figures displayed were for those in August 2017 and he had to wait quite a while for the figures to display again on their loop. He stated it was not an effective way to show how well the Borough was doing and he wanted to show residents how much energy had been saved. The Chairman stated the figures were published in the Around the Royal Borough publication and she had also asked Maidenhead Library to switch the television on.

The Chairman wished to record her thanks and the thanks of the Borough and residents for all the hard work the Energy Manager had put into saving energy and keeping costs low. She thanked the Energy Manager for all the ideas he had brought to fruition and that he would be greatly missed.