Green Impact for Health Toolkit

There are over 100 actions that need to be evidenced and these are broken down by the following Work Areas;

Energy Saving, Food and Drink, Governance, Healthy Planet, Learning, News & Communication, Prescribing, Quality Improvement, Social Prescribing, Travel and Exercise, Vulnerable Groups, Waste and Recycling, Water and Zero Carbon.

Some obvious examples of these actions include measuring and reducing the amount of energy we use on our heating and lighting under the Energy Saving area and promoting recycling and reduction of waste going to landfill under Waste & Recycling. There are also plenty of options that aren’t immediately obvious as contributing towards the sustainability of healthcare, including the promotion and support of breastfeeding mothers in our practices (under the Food and Drink area), and a lot of the great work done in the county regarding reducing the use of high-volume inhalers for patients with asthma (under the Prescribing area).

Each action attracts it’s own number of points with 75 points needed to achieve a bronze award and 150 to achieve a silver award.

In late October, we went through a video call audit with Students Organising Sustainability (SOS-UK, the organisation who administer the toolkit), and there was lots of great positive feedback, particularly into the level of evidence we had provided and around some of the ways in which we share and disseminate information and learning as part of an at-scale organisation.

We also discussed our plans moving forward and how we can build on this momentum to continue to work towards being more sustainable and environmentally friendly across the organisation. We know this will be tough in the coming year with the general demands of Primary Care, but it is important that we continue to focus on this in 2025 and beyond!

Positive about Breastfeeding

We are delighted to be signed up to the Somerset Positive About Breastfeeding Scheme. We welcome mothers and babies to breastfeed in all public areas of our premises and all our staff support the needs of breastfeeding mothers. For more information please visit here

NHS Somerset Medicines Management

We are lucky to be supported by our local NHS Somerset Medicines Management team who have a number of workstreams to support us in greener prescribing practices. For more information please visit here

Look out for further updates throughout 2025!

Energy Saving

Below are 10 tips for saving energy in your home:

1. Adjusting your combi boiler flow temperature to 60°C or below can knock £££s off your heating bill and reduce energy waste

2. Heat the right places at the right times - turn down the radiators in rooms you aren’t using, set the timer on central heating to only heat when needed, & ensure radiators aren’t covered by furniture to allow heat to get into the room

3. Be mindful of hot water use - reducing shower time to 4 mins could save you £60/yr, swapping 1 bath a week for a 4 min shower could save £9/yr, & ensuring a hot water cylinder is insulated can save up to £40/yr

4. Don’t boil more water than you need to save around £10/yr

5. Unplug your ‘Vampire Devices’ that drain power when left plugged in and save £45/yr. These include; smart speakers, set top boxes, microwaves & phones/tablets left on charge

6. Think about how you’re lighting your home - turning off lights could save £7/yr & replacing bulbs with LED lights can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by up to 35kg/yr - equivalent to driving 100 miles!

7. Consider when – and how – you use your washing machine - save around £24/yr by running 30 degree cycles, doing 1 less load per week, always do a full load or use a half load setting

8. Run the dishwasher one less time each week - could save £12/yr and running only when full will reduce water use

9. Use tumble dryers sparingly where possible can save up to £50/yr

10. Draught-proof windows and doors - professionally done can save around £80/yr but simple measures like closing curtains and keyhole covers can also help keep the warmth in and cold out

For more information visit here

If you own a property in England or Wales you can also get recommendations for home improvements that could make your property cheaper to heat and keep warm here

Greener Prescribing

As you may know, even if they are never opened, once medicines have left the pharmacy, they cannot be recycled or used by anyone else. It has been estimated that £300 million of NHS prescribed medicines are wasted each year.

We encourage patients to:

• Check what medicines you have at home before re-ordering more
• If you are ordering your repeat prescription, only ask for the items you need more of. Stockpiles of medicines kept at home can be dangerous for children and pets
• Tell your Pharmacist or Doctor if you have stopped taking your medication for any reason
• Open your prescription bag while you are still inside the pharmacy and return any unwanted items to the pharmacy staff before you leave.

For more information, please visit here

Thank you for your help!

To find out more you can visit the Green Impact for Health Toolkit FAQs and Information here:

Green Impact for Health Toolkit FAQs

Greener NHS

Greener Practice