Case studies

The council has delivered a wide range of projects and activities to reduce carbon emissions and adapt to climate change in Cambridge and has reduced its own emissions by over 28 per cent through the implementation of its Carbon Management Plans.

Lancashire County Council's Shared Lives scheme matches people with learning disabilities with families in the community so they can live in their home, becoming part of their family, developing independence and friendships, gaining confidence and new living skills.

Oldham Council have commissioned KeyRing to provide flexible help through networks made up of 10 people with learning disabilities who are then supported by a community living volunteer and community enablers to help people gain independence and life skills.

Reigate and Banstead Borough Council funded a scheme for people with learning disabilities to develop social interactions and have fun through a community choir. The choir combines singing with Makaton, which uses signals, signing and speech, and also involves members getting involved song writing.

Rotherham Council challenges the traditional model of community support for people with learning disabilities through working with social enterprise Community Catalysts on a project that supports local people to set up innovative new activities for people with learning disabilities, as well as supporting them to develop their own projects.

To help ensure good take-up of health checks in Suffolk, workshops are held for people with learning disabilities and their carers explaining what the annual checks involve and how people can get registered for them. They are run by a team of peer educators who are people with learning disabilities themselves who have been trained by Ace Anglia.

In Hazlemere, the council and residents are determined to stop the decline of pollinators and help their wonderful natural friends. Bees are vital to both pollinate the food we need to survive and pollinate many of the trees and flowers that provide habitats for wildlife.

In November 2020, Cumbria County Council’s Cabinet unanimously agreed the council’s first Carbon Management Strategy which sets out how they will respond to the international, national and regional aspiration to achieve a low/net zero carbon economy by 2050.

Since 2014, Cumbria County Council has invested £12.9 million in its LED Street Lighting replacement and improvement programme, replacing over 45,000 streetlights with more efficient and cost-effective LED technology.

Cumbria was named as one of five pilot areas to receive a share of a £1 million fund from the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) in August 2020 to develop a draft Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) pilot.