Environmental Policy

The Willoughbridge Garden Trust Environmental Policy – July 2015 (updated)

  • Outline:

The Willoughbridge Garden Trust manages 12 acres of diverse and semi-natural gardens in Staffordshire. It attracts a long-term average of 24,000 visitors per year. The garden also contains 3 significant buildings and a series of other smaller powered / heated outbuildings (lower car park toilets, gardeners’ shed and greenhouses).

The main buildings are listed thus:-

      • Tea room / office complex
      • The Lodge
      • The Bryan Mayer Pavilion
  • Environmental Principles:
      • The Trust is committed to protecting the environment.
      • The Trust considers the environment in all aspects of its activities.
      • The Trust recognises that its environmental responsibilities extend beyond the boundaries of its properties.
  • Policy Aims:
      • Climate change – The Trust will take steps to reduce its emissions of greenhouse gases, to identify actions to mitigate the impact of and to adapt to climate change. It will encourage action by others by setting an example and within the organisation.
      • Education – The Trust will promote good environmental practice at its properties and in its everyday operations and will organise education projects / awareness which encourage caring for the environment.
      • Biodiversity – The Trust will act to conserve biodiversity on its land and properties and will promote biodiversity.
      • Energy – The Trust will aim to reduce its energy use and support the use of energy from renewable resources where possible and appropriate.
      • Waste – The Trust will aim to reduce its use of materials and, where appropriate, recycle or reuse materials.
      • Water – The Trust will aim to reduce its overall water consumption and introduce sustainable management of wastewater in appropriate locations.
      • Purchasing – The Trust aims to take environmental impacts into consideration when purchasing goods and materials and, as far as possible, to procure food and catering supplies from local sources.
      • Legislation – The Trust will comply with all relevant environmental legislation and aim to adopt best practice and standards in any codes of practice.
  • Monitoring and Communication:
    • Monitoring: The Trust will set up procedures to measure its existing environmental impact and will report annually on its performance against objectives and targets.
    • Communication: The Trust is committed to keeping its members, visitors and staff up to date on its environmental performance and to reporting regularly on actions taken to reduce its environmental.

Green Credentials ‘Environment. Efficiency. Green. Energy.’

Here at The Dorothy Clive Garden, we believe it is our responsibility to protect the natural environment and as such we would like to promote our Green Credentials. Where possible, we are reducing, reusing and recycling within all our activities.

  • In the garden – We have a sustainable Glasshouse heating system. Our gasification boiler is self-sufficient as it uses only firewood from our sustainably coppiced woodland. We also only use peat-free compost. Our Integrated Pest Management has also been a success as it is far more efficient than spraying harmful chemicals and costs us £600 a year in total.
  • In the Tearoom – All our meals and baked goods are cooked on site. In the late summer and autumn, we also source a high percentage of the ingredients from our edible garden and greenhouse. These include: figs, courgettes, melons, apples, peaches and a multitude of herbs. Additionally, our Waste Audit has revealed we waste less than £5 a day in our tearoom! We also source many items locally where possible in order to reduce our carbon footprint, this includes: drinks from a local brewery & Cheshire Farm Ice Cream. We also have solar panels, providing some of the electricity for our tearoom.
  • In the office – We take measures including: going paperless where possible and turning off all electrical equipment to save energy when it is not in use.
  • Changes for the future:

We are pleased to announce that we have just received a European Grant for an Efficiency Audit which will help us to further improve the environmental sustainability of our garden. We are also currently researching the possibility of providing electric car charging points in the garden.

We are committed to improving our environmental impact through:

• Closing supply loops where possible and sourcing locally and ethically
• Reducing waste, recycling and composting
• Reducing energy use and installing renewable energy sources where practicable
• Using green cleaning products
• Reducing water use
• Improving and maintaining the garden as a habitat for wildlife
• Encouraging our visitors to adopt our green values
• Encouraging sustainable transport options to get to the garden (coach trips)
• Complying with or exceeding environmental legislation
• Monitoring and reviewing our progress
• Providing an enjoyable, educational and inspiring experience for visitors to The Dorothy Clive Garden and our staff.
• Promoting sustainability, through our own practices, through providing access to green products and working with other green organisations.
• The social side of sustainability. The garden employs a community of people and offers social opportunities for them as well as the wider community. We provide opportunities for vulnerable people, school children, holiday makers and local people to enjoy themselves, relax, exercise and learn in the fresh air. We are committed to expanding access in the garden and improving the experience for our visitors. We also support a number of sustainable projects and charities.