Barnet Climate Action GroupUpdate 11th April: Jess Gold from Better Streets for Barnet gave a presentation and led the discussion.
Our April meeting is on Wednesday 6 April 6.30-7.30pm on Zoom. We will be discussing Barnet plans for walking, cycling and cleaner transport. The Zoom link has been sent to the email list. If you would like to join the list, please email the address at the foot of the page (sorry it’s an image to prevent spam).
Update 17 March: Mentioned during the meeting: a useful list of fifty actions that councils can take to make their area more climate and nature friendly, produced by Friends of the Earth: https://takeclimateaction.uk/download/climate-action-plan-councils.
There may be more notes to come.
Our March meeting is on Thursday 17 March 2022 from 6.30pm – 7.30pm online.
[Zoom Meeting link now removed]
We will be discussing Barnet’s Sustainability Strategy workshops – the first of which took place on 14 March in High Barnet.
The second will take place on Tuesday 15th in Burnt Oak, Edgware.
A third is taking place in Finchley on Wednesday 16th.
An online event for various groups is planned for the morning of Monday 21st March.
We hope that attendees to those workshops will be able to attend and provide feedback to BCAG.
1. Book “Deep Adaptation: Navigating the Realities of Climate Chaos”
The report, edited by Jem Bendell and Rupert Read, provides the latest update over a range of areas, UK based but with a strong global & local orientation and recognition of the exacerbation of inequalities brought about via climate change.
It provides an up-to-date scientific assessment which is strong enough for editors and contributors to accept that, painful though it is to write or say – and harder still to accept – we are facing the inevitable or probable collapse of civilisation as we have known it (the two authors differ on whether ‘inevitable’ or ‘probable’). This is attendant, of course, with feelings of grief and despair, fully acknowledged in the book. In fact, our actions emanate from our feelings not our intellect.
2. Online article “What next on climate? The need for a new moderate flank”
The necessity now is therefore for deep or transformative adaptation, explained briefly in an article by Rupert on the need for a ‘moderate flank’ of which BCAG might well see itself as a part:
https://systems-souls-society.com/what-next-on-climate-the-need-for-a-moderate-flank/
Update 26 October 2023: The scorecards have been recalculated this year, and Barnet is now doing better. The web address has also changed: see
https://councilclimatescorecards.uk/councils/london-borough-of-barnet/ and
https://cape.mysociety.org/councils/london-borough-of-barnet/.
New research by Climate Emergency UK assessed council climate action plans according to 28 questions across nine sections, based on the expert-approved checklist. Each council was marked against these criteria and given a right to reply before the scores underwent a final audit. This work was completed between June and December 2021.
Barnet Council was given a 0% rating.
Update 2 February: the presentation on Barnet Council’s recently released Sustainability Strategy Framework is now available. (PDF 580 Kb, 19 slides)
Our February meeting is on Tuesday 1st February 2022 from 6.30pm to 7.30pm online.
Please book on Eventbrite at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/a-sustainability-strategy-for-the-london-borough-of-barnet-tickets-254382814847. A Zoom link will be sent to all registered participants.
Presentation and Discussion on Barnet’s Forthcoming Sustainability Strategy for the Borough
Barnet Council’s Sustainability Strategy Framework was unanimously passed through at their Policy and Resources Committee meeting on 9 December 2021.
The Sustainability Strategy itself is expected to be released by Barnet Council in early 2022.
Ahead of the 9 December Committee meeting, BCAG posted a briefing paper on the Framework document (available here – which includes links to the Framework document) and set out a series of questions relating to the Strategy – a number of which were highlighted by Councillors at the Committee meeting. Also see Barnet Borough Times report on the meeting and Framework here.
January 2022’s BCAG meeting will provide a presentation and discussion on the Framework document and forthcoming Sustainability Strategy.
A zoom link will be sent to all registered participants closer to the time of the event.
Update 23 December 2021
BCAG will be reviewing the Sustainability Strategy Framework in our January 2022 online meeting: a date for this meeting will be announced shortly. We look forward to seeing you then.
At Barnet Council’s Policy and Resources Committee (PRC) meeting, taking place on 9 December 2021, the agenda will include some long awaited detail on Barnet’s forthcoming Sustainability Strategy, said to be released in the new year. BCAG have produced the forthcoming briefing note on the Framework document and sets out some key requirements to ensure the Strategy is a success.
Download Barnet Sustainability Framework Note December 2021 (PDF 575 Kb, 6 pages)
Living with an Air Source Heat Pump (ASHP)
Update: We had a second speaker Jesse Scharf as well as Jonathan Waxman as originally advertised. Here are their slides:
Our November meeting is on Wednesday 24th November 2021 from 7pm to 8pm online.
Please book on Eventbrite at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/living-with-an-air-source-heat-pump-ashp-tickets-211638726127. A Zoom link will be sent to all registered participants.
Air Source Heat Pumps (AHSP) are a low carbon technology to heat homes – what is it like living with one?
There has been much in the press of late around the end of gas heating and a shift to new home heating solutions from heat networks to heat pumps. The Prime Minster has stated that there will be ban on all new gas boilers in new build properties from 2025 and a ban on gas boilers being fitted into all homes from 2035.
The Government has set a target for annual installations of heat pumps in 600,000 homes by 2028 – a 20 fold increase over the current rate of installs. Many of these are planned to be added in new build homes – but at least a third are hoped to be retrofitted into existing homes. A new Boiler Upgrade Scheme is to be introduced in April 2022 to support the deployment of low-carbon heat in existing buildings. This will provide households with £5,000 grants when they switch to an air source heat pump (ASHP) or £6,000 when they switch to a ground source one.
Jesse Scharf and Barnet resident Jonathan Waxman have both recently had ASHPs installed in their homes and will be providing some insights on the process leading up to the choice of a heat pump, the installation process and kit, costs, and the differences in heat your home with a heat pump as compared to a conventional gas boiler.
Background Reading
Heating and Building Strategy (October 2021)
The September meeting of Barnet Climate Action Group is a chance to hear updates from members about their activities, and to organise our plans for the future. It will be held on Zoom on Tuesday 28th September 2021 at 6.30pm. Those on our mailing list will have received the Zoom details. If anyone else would like to join us, please get in touch via the email address at the foot of the page.
We will be covering:
The Barnet Climate Action Group has prepared a response to the latest consultation on the Barnet Draft Local Plan. Full details of the Local Plan and the consultation are on the council’s web site https://engage.barnet.gov.uk/local-plan-reg-19 .
The BCAG response is here: BCAG Barnet Local Plan Response Aug 2021.pdf (PDF 258 Kb, 4 pages).
BCAG does not believe that the Barnet Draft Local Plan goes far enough in tackling climate change. The challenge of reducing carbon emissions of new build – and opportunities to use new build to reduce emissions of nearby existing buildings though the use of heat networks/decentralised energy options – across the borough are not fully addressed in the Local Plan.
While the Barnet Draft Local Plan is stronger on adaptation measures, BCAG believe there is more that needs to be done to protect the borough’s communities and infrastructure from the impacts of climate change.
Barnet Councils new Local Plan sets the Council’s vision for growth and development in Barnet over a 15-year period (2021-2036). It is out for consultation and representations until 9th August 2021. https://engage.barnet.gov.uk/local-plan-reg-19
Update 29 September 2021: The new Local Plan has now moved on to the next stage following the consultation on the Regulation 19 Draft Local Plan. You can follow progress on the Barnet council web site.
Update 10 August 2021: see BCAG response to local plan.
Yes! The Development Plan is the basis upon which planning applications in the Borough will be determined. In the next 15 years that means some 60,000 decisions taken by the Council involving the development of new homes, the amount of affordable housing, loss of open space, new businesses, how Barnet will look, its ‘character’, how it tackles Climate Change, biodiversity, wildlife, transport, energy etc will all be affected by it.
This version of the Local Plan is a draft document specifically produced to enable representations to be made on the draft plan that will then be considered by an independent Inspector at the examination stage. Written representations and appearing at the public examination are supposed to carry the same weight.
The draft plan is a technical document but do not let that put you off. If it does not say what you think it should – or says something you think it shouldn’t then make a representation. If you want to change Barnet’s policy at this stage keep in mind that you should have good grounds and sound evidence to back up what you say – just having an opinion won’t wash!
Pretty much anything and everything to do with the built and natural environment in Barnet. Chapter headings include:
The Plan contains:
By 2036 Barnet is looking at a projected population increase of over 50,000 up to a total of 452,000. This will need a minimum of 35,460 new homes (2,364 new homes per annum). Barnet’s Plan seeks to enable this growth and deal with the implications of it.
The policy approach should be strengthened. The important part of the plan – the one in daily use by planners in determining applications and considered by developers is the Policy. In this plan the supporting text often reads stronger than the policy.
[The original document contains copies of eight policies in the appendix which appear to have a significant bearing on open spaces, biodiversity and parks in the borough. These are omitted from the web version]
There are probably a lot more ideas that could and should be raised.
Barnet are using a form for representations based on nationally prescribed ones. Do use them. It makes life easier all round.
Roger Chapman
Chair, Barnet Green Spaces Network
6th July 2021
The appendix of the original document contains the text of the following policies relevant to Open Space. These are omitted from the web version.