Ealing Council has secured £3.9 million in government-backed funding to help slash energy use and carbon emissions across the borough, with a major focus on decarbonising Perceval House, the council’s largest source of emissions.
More than two-thirds of the funding – £2.6 million – will be spent on upgrading Perceval House. The work, which is set to finish by 2027, includes replacing outdated gas boilers with an air source heat pump, fitting solar panels on the roof and preparing the site for potential connection to a future heat network.
Once complete, the improvements are expected to cut 273 tonnes of carbon emissions annually – the equivalent of removing 256 cars from the M25 – and save over £1 million in future maintenance.
Council Leader Peter Mason called the initiative a key step in Ealing’s goal to reach net zero by 2030. He said: “Tackling the climate crisis is our top priority for the borough and this significant cash injection will go a long way in helping us reduce the council’s carbon emissions, Climate action just makes sense, as we’re also reducing our energy use and local air pollution.”
Councillor Paul Driscoll, the council’s cabinet member for climate action, added: “We’re very grateful to the funding we received from Salix Finance to enable us to do these works to our schools and council buildings helping us tackle the climate crisis by significantly reducing our carbon emissions.”
An additional £1.3 million will go toward upgrades at Mandeville, John Perryn and Drayton Green primary schools.
The funding is part of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, run by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and delivered by Salix. Ian Rodger of Salix said the work would “make great strides in reducing carbon emissions” while improving comfort in public buildings.
