A Barnsley legal firm has gained grant funding to support installation of modern energy-saving lighting in its historic 200-year-old premises.
Solicitors Ridley and Hall are based in a property in Church Street dating back to the 18th century. The building was previously home to the headmaster of Barnsley Grammar School which, until the early 1900s, was located next-door in what is now The Cooper Gallery.
The stone-built, four-storey office premises has now been fitted with 65 LED light fittings and a range of smart motion sensors, replacing an ad hoc collection of fluorescent lighting of varying age and quality.
This comprehensive upgrade is set to reduce the firm’s annual electricity consumption by 4,000kWh and carbon emissions by 0.86 tonne. It will slash around £1,500 a year off energy bills.
Ridley and Hall gained a Low Carbon Grant to cover more than 40 per cent of the £23,000 cost of the improvement project. This was awarded through Barnsley Council’s Net Zero Barnsley programme, delivered by The Business Village and supported by the Government’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) administered via South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA).
Net Zero Barnsley specialist advisors helped the company devise and calculate the impact of their new lighting scheme.
Ridley and Hall’s business development director Adam Fletcher said:
“Probably the most important thing the Net Zero Barnsley team did for us was dispel the myth that there was very little we could do to improve energy efficiency in our historic building.
“We’d previously assumed that modern energy saving solutions were not an option for us simply because of the age of our building. They challenged that view and helped us think about a robust and cost-effective lighting refit scheme, sympathetic to the age and style of property.
“Thanks to their support, we now have lighter, brighter and cleaner office spaces for our staff to work in and we are reducing energy bills and carbon emissions significantly.”
Ridley and Hall is committed to sustainability with an active environmental committee of staff looking at ways to reduce waste, recycle and improve energy efficiency across the business. The firm will next look to installing EV charging points and investigate the possibility of solar panels on roof space to the rear of the building behind its decorative stone façade.
Net Zero Barnsley business development manager Kevin Steel said:
“We’re very pleased to have worked with Ridley and Hall to get them switched on to the potential for reducing energy consumption and costs in their historic town centre premises.
“By replacing decades-old lighting with modern, cost-effective fittings, they’ve taken the first big step on their Net Zero journey to boost sustainability and profitability.”
The legal company’s premises were converted from a headmaster’s residence to commercial office space around 1914 when Barnsley Grammar school moved away from the building next-door and it was opened as a gallery at the behest of benefactor Samuel Joshua Cooper.
Ridley and Hall is a firm of Yorkshire solicitors with offices in Huddersfield, Pontefract and Barnsley, where they gained a presence in 2021 with the acquisition of local firm Newman and Bond. Through the legacy of Newman and Bond, the business has been based in its Church Street premises for more than 100 years.
Low Carbon Grants support capital projects for eligible small businesses to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions; reduce energy costs, make their businesses more competitive, resilient and productive and potentially safeguard and create jobs through improved profitability.
Net Zero Barnsley, at The Business Village, Barnsley is delivering, in partnership with Barnsley Council, a series of intensive programmes in which participants receive specialist sustainability coaching to help them work through carbon calculators to define and measure their existing CO2 outputs and identify priorities for action. They are then helped to draw up detailed plans to reduce emissions; and there’s workshops and peer-to-peer support to share ideas.
On completion of decarbonisation plans, companies could be eligible for capital grant, to be match funded, which they can invest in new green technology or practices which will lead to saving energy, as well as money on bills.
All UK businesses must reduce carbon emissions to net zero by 2050, and Barnsley Council has set an earlier target of 2045. Net Zero Barnsley is supporting dozens of Barnsley businesses to work towards this goal.
Actions to reduce carbon include switching to sustainable forms of energy, investing in new equipment to improve efficiency, adopting smart technology, making behavioural changes in the workplace, reducing waste, considering supply chains and supporting sustainable transport schemes for staff. To find out more about getting involved in Net Zero Barnsley, contact Kevin Steel on 01226 249590 or ksteel@BarnsleyBIC.co.uk
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