Decision details

The ESCC Strategy illustrates the community leadership role provided by the council and our partners in the Environmental Sustainability Partnership. It communicates the ESP’s strategic approach, its priorities, workstreams and key projects.

(1) To ENDORSE the ESCC Strategy, further to adoption by the ESP Board, in order to support the work of the ESP and demonstrate the Council’s leadership.

There is now a substantial body of coordinated work underway by the council, our partners and the community to address the issues of environmental sustainability and climate change. There is a need to communicate our approach and to demonstrate that there is coordination underway and a clear strategy for meeting the community’s needs. The ESCC Strategy can also help the ESP to achieve a higher profile and promote the strong commitment to this work.

Many other local authorities have similar documents and we are frequently asked by members of the public and other organisations to provide a strategy document.

Another option would be to not have a strategy. So far, we have taken this option to enable us to prioritise making things happen. However, due to the growing body of work and the involvement of a wide range of partners and communities, there is a need for a more substantive document. To avoid taking undue time away from other work, the process of developing the strategy was not unduly onerous and the strategy document itself is being kept short.