Lincolnshire firms seek support to go greener
Businesses in Lincolnshire are increasingly seeking support to become more sustainable, according to a college boss.
George Bell, head of leadership and management at Boston College, said more companies in the region were becoming aware of environmental issues linked to how their business operates.
Speaking at a Bootcamp event in Boston organised by the Federation of Small Businesses, he said: “As a further education college with 1,700 16 to 19-year-olds, we are very conscious about how engaged our students are in the sustainability agenda as part of their day-to-day lives.
“As such, we give our support to events like Earth Day because our students are very much in tune with that. We are also aware that a lot of companies are heading along the same trajectory by wanting to become more sustainable in what they do.
“As a college we have recently hosted a new series of training sessions for local businesses on environmental management and assessment which have been very popular.”
“There are a lot of food companies in the area and many are being pushed by the big supermarkets to be more sustainable.
“It’s important for them to not only maintain those contracts but to also attract new customers by being able to demonstrate they are using environmentally sustainable methods in their food production.”
At the same event, the FSB also showcased its own new support programme for small businesses looking to be as eco-friendly as possible.
Due to be officially launched later this year, the ambitious ten-year Responsible Business Support programme will be open to both FSB members and non-members.
Alison Heppenstall, from consultants Climate Action for Associations, said: “Running a small business can be very challenging and becoming more sustainable to the point of reaching net zero might seem like one challenge too many.
“That’s where this programme comes in because we have developed resources to help small companies such as climate action plans which can be tailored to an individual business, carbon footprinting and practical guides.
“Ultimately, we want to support businesses to grow in an environmentally responsible way and to work with like-minded organisations, such as local councils and corporate partners.”