Rochdale secures £11m investment as part of Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme

Brook House in Middleton is one of the buildings which will benefit

Rochdale council has secured £11m funding through the government’s Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS) to invest in heat decarbonisation works and other measures for 19 public buildings, including leisure centres and schools.

An application submitted via the Greater Manchester Combined Authority for Salix funding in November 2020 amounting to £11,062,288 was granted and is the second-highest grant awarded in Greater Manchester.

This will allow significant investment in decarbonising many public buildings and schools across Rochdale as part of the council’s commitment to tackling climate change.

Plans include the installation of air-source heat pumps for heating; solar panels to generate and create electricity with battery storage; insulation and LED lighting to improve energy efficiency and energy monitoring and control systems to ensure these public facilities can accurately measure their energy usage.

Once complete, the decarbonisation works are estimated to save over 2,000 tCO2 per annum - equivalent to 435 cars driven for one year or 241 homes’ energy use for one year. 

Councillor Sara Rowbotham, cabinet member for climate change and sustainability, said: “This is a major achievement for Rochdale and demonstrates our commitment to tackling the climate emergency. We know that we have a massive challenge to achieve our aim of becoming a net-zero carbon emissions borough by 2038, but we want to show that the council is leading the way in tackling climate change and improving our environment.

“We are proud that after a lot of hard work we have been successful in getting this funding. I believe that this is just the start, but like our work on the Clean Air Plan; securing funding for a 5MW solar farm at Chamber House and pilot schemes like the E-Scooter project in Rochdale town centre means we are making great strides to meet our carbon reduction targets”.

Buildings set to benefit from retrofitting measures include Rochdale Leisure Centre; Middleton Arena; Heywood Sports Village; Number One Riverside; Rochdale Town Hall; Fashion Corner; the council’s Green Lane depot; Rochdale Crematorium; Bowlee Sports Pavilion and Brook House, Middleton.

Nine primary schools across the borough will also benefit: Alkrington; Castleton; Lowerplace; Meanwood; Norden; Shawclough; St Luke’s CE; St Mary’s CE and Whittaker Moss.