Sustainability priorities include eliminating carbon emissions through investing to reduce and decarbonise energy consumption, using water more efficiently, reducing waste, sourcing food and other commodities sustainably, and caring for the wildlife that inhabits our gardens.
Sustainability
Dedicated to minimising our environmental footprint, we collaborate for sustainability with suppliers and contractors. Our aim is historical carbon neutrality, offsetting all program related emissions. We hold a Silver accreditation in the Greengage ECOsmart Hotels and Venues Certification, and are ISO 140001 accredited.
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Our impact
Green kitchens
Our chefs, who have all gone through sustainable food training, use fresh herbs and vegetables from our garden. We seasonally source meat, fruit and vegetables from local farmers wherever possible, ensuring all fish are sustainably sourced, and all tea, coffee and bananas are Fairtrade.
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Biodiversity
We keep beehives in the gardens and partner with local beekeepers to produce our own Ashridge honey. We have placed bird boxes and standing deadwood bat roosts. Red Kites, which were once endangered in the UK, are now nesting in our gardens as well as across the wider Ashridge Estate. Our trees are home to the most successful breeding pair in Hertfordshire. We manage our arboretum with biodiversity in mind with standing deadwood habitats and No-Mow regimes. Everything we grow for the garden is in peat-free compost.
CArbon neutrality
We publicly report our Greenhouse Gas emissions across scopes 1, 2 and 3, following the Greenhouse Gas Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard from the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). We have absolute Greenhouse Gas reduction target for Scopes 1, 2 and 3, which is to be Net Zero by 2050. Between 2006 and 2023 we have reduced our Scope 1 emissions from heating by 29%. Between 2010 and 2023 we have reduced our Scope 2 emissions from electricity use by 72%.
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Our goals
Achieve zero emissions by 2030
Reduce electricity use by 5%
Revert to 100% renewable electricity contract
Go paper free and/or any paper used is 100% recycled
Greatly reduce our water use by installing efficient taps
Reduce use of single use plastic by 30%
Reduce weight of waste produced by 10%
Reduce emissions from business travel by offering discounts to clients who use public transport or coaches rather than cars
Develop and implement a Biodiversity action plan