The government has announced it has allocated £409m to public sector bodies across England as part of an effort to help reduce the carbon emissions of buildings including museums.
The funding is part of a £1.8 billion investment package and will see 144 public sector organisations receive support.
The funding is being delivered through the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, which provides grants to public sector bodies to fund projects reducing carbon emissions such as heat pumps, solar panels and insulation.
As part of the third phase of the funding, organisations to receive funding include Adur and Worthing Councils, which have been awarded almost £3m to support the decarbonisation of six buildings, including the Grade II listed Worthing Museum.
Phase 3b includes Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, which has been provided £9.2m to reduce carbon emissions from St James’s Hospital. Fossil fuel heating systems will be removed from many buildings across the hospital, including Thackray Museum of Medicine, and the buildings will be connected to a council owned district heating network.
Phase 3b of the scheme also saw Greater Manchester Combined Authority awarded £18.4m for two projects, including decarbonisation and energy efficiency measures across the Greater Manchester public estate including the National Football Museum.
Medway Council has been awarded £4.2m to decarbonise 20 buildings across its estate including Guildhall Museum. Fossil fuel heating systems in all buildings will be replaced with air source heat pumps. Each building will be connected to the existing Worthing Heat Network, which uses a pump system to turn heat from wastewater in the local sewer into sustainable energy.
Other museums which have previously received support for the scheme include the Science and Industry Museum in Phase 1 of the Scheme, which received £4.2m for decarbonisation activities.
Phase 3c of the Scheme is expected to open to applications in autumn 2023.
