There is various support available such as advice, training, grants, and practical tools to help businesses reduce their emissions and address climate change.

Join the Cambridge net zero journey to find out more about sustainability support and opportunities for your business.

Improve your business’s energy efficiency

By becoming more energy efficient, your business can take control of its energy use and reduce bills.

Energy saving has many other benefits, including increased productivity, a more comfortable working environment, increased competitiveness and increased profitability.

Support programmes and projects

• Sign the Cambridge Climate Change Charter and show your business’s commitment to mitigating climate change by pledging to reduce your carbon emissions and find out how to take action.
• The UK Business Climate Hub provides advice to SMEs to reduce their energy costs and cut carbon. Find out about actions to take to quickly reduce costs, what to consider in the longer term, and what support is available.
• Visit the Energy Saving Trust who provide support, advice and tools for businesses on energy efficiency and net zero

Tools, publications and guides

• Effective energy management is a key part of managing your business and can help you to cut energy waste and reduce cost. Download the Carbon Trust'sEffective energy management for business guide and use their Energy management self-assessment tool
• Energy is one of the largest controllable overheads in office buildings, which means there are many opportunities to make savings. Download the Carbon Trust's energy saving guide for office based companiesto learn about the key energy saving opportunities available.
• Carbon Trust Lighting Guide: Energy efficient lighting advice for your organisation, including guidance on energy-saving LED lighting.
• The Carbon Trust’s carbon footprint calculatoris designed to help SME businesses measure their corporate emission footprint
• The Carbon Trust's heating, ventilation and air conditioning guidecan help you improve your organisation's energy efficiency.
• How to be a Good Supplier: Guide to managing energy issues and improving environmental credentials of your business
• The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero’s Energy Technology List is a list energy-efficient plant and machinery such as boilers, lighting, air conditioning and refrigeration equipment.
• SME Guide to Energy Efficiency sets out low-cost measures that small and medium businesses can start saving energy.
• The Cambridgeshire Chambers of Commerce has lots of free online resources for businesses.
• Action Space provides free, tailored tools and resources to help SMEs cut their emissions.

Reduce your business’s resource use and waste

By reducing waste and recycling more, your business can:

• save money on waste collections
• ensure compliance with the pre-treatment of waste regulation
• reduce your carbon footprint
• achieve ISO accreditation

By improving water efficiency, your business can:

• save money – typically around 30% if no measures have previously been implemented
• reduce your impact on the environment

These measures can enhance your reputation as a socially responsible business and increase your competitive advantage.

Reduce waste

• Set up a waste collection for your business – we can collect your food waste and mixed recycling
• Cambridge Sustainable Food provides a place for businesses to donate surplus food
• Work with the Waste and Resources Action Programme (Wrap) to learn how to be more resource efficient and increase recycling

Save water

• Waterwise offers advice on how to reduce your business’s water consumption and retrofit your facilities

Increase sustainable travel at your business

Travelling more sustainably can help you and your staff cut travel costs and emissions, while improving productivity and health.

Support programmes and projects

• Smart Journeys helps employers, developers and schools to implement and promote sustainable travel. The not-for-profit enterprise supplies bespoke services to suit all travel-planning needs. They can provide travel plans, management strategies, surveys, engagement events and more. They also have a network for employers that become members. It offers dedicated support and guidance, resources and more to encourage sustainable travel.
• The Workplace Charging Scheme is a voucher-based scheme that provides support towards the up-front costs of the purchase and installation of electric vehicle charge points.
• The Energy Saving Trust manages transport grants and loans for businesses for electric vehicles and charging points (when available).
• Low emissions vehicle grant – some low-emission vehicles are eligible for government grant to help businesses purchase these at a discount

Adapt your business to climate change

Climate change means that extreme weather incidents are becoming more common and more severe. Climate projections show that over the coming decades we will face an increased risk of climate change impacts, including:

• extreme rainfall, leading to more frequent and severe floods
• heat waves
• drought
• rise in sea levels and tidal surges
• storms
• wildfires

The government’s risk assessment and adaptation planning guidance helps businesses plan for climate change impacts and improve resilience and business continuity.