Establishing the Green House Awards for student accommodation in Northampton

Description of impact

The Planet Too project established important frameworks to encourage landlords to focus on environmental sustainability, though work remains to be done in getting landlords to change behaviour. One such development was the Planet Too Green House awards. The awards are given to Landlords that follow the simple, flexible framework developed through the research.

47 properties in Northampton were accredited during the Green House award pilot, someting that has been used as a marketing tool online. For example, Dawson Properties state that their Gold Accreditation 'will mean your Northampton student house will have a minimal carbon footprint and will be good for the environment and ensure you receive maximum enjoyment from your student accommodation in Northampton', and Richard Lee Student Accommodation who received Gold accreditation for their energy efficiency.

Stakeholders/Beneficiaries

Students, Landords, Higher Education Institutions

How have research outputs led to this impact?

Researchers at the University of Northampton conducted a study looking at the 'efficacy of student engagement with a sustainability project called Planet Too'. The project looked at the engagement of students and landlords with sustainability issues in regard to housing. Part of the research was the development of the Green House Awards Scheme:

'The Green House Awards scheme involved provision of incentives to the students in private accommodation to encourage them to practice more sustainable behaviours (e.g., recycling or conservation of energy). To evaluate the Green House Awards scheme, the student accommodation was inspected by two members of the P2 project team, based on set criteria (e.g., the presence of double glazing on the windows, wall and loft insulation, as well as engagement with recycling and conservation of electricity by the students). If the houses were deemed to have met the criteria, they were awarded Green House status.'

Impact status	Completed
Impact date	2014
Category of impact	Environmental impacts, Economic impacts, 07: Affordable and Clean Energy (UN SDG), 13: Climate Action (UN SDG)
Impact level	Mature Impact