In a statement North Herts Council announced that they were "proud to be delivering one of the largest leisure centre decarbonisation projects in the UK – a major step towards achieving our target of reaching net zero in our operations by 2030".

"Thanks to £7.7 million in government grant funding through the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, we're upgrading all three of our leisure centres – Hitchin Swimming & Fitness Centre, North Herts Leisure Centre in Letchworth, and Royston Leisure Centre – to significantly cut carbon emissions". 

"The improvements include replacing end-of-life gas boilers with energy-efficient air source heat pumps, installing solar panels, and upgrading insulation, air handling, and glazing systems".

"Following the completion of these decarbonisation measures, we expect to achieve over a 60% reduction in CO2 emissions across all three sites. As our leisure centres are currently the largest source of carbon emissions from our operations, this project represents a major step forward in our efforts to become a net zero council". 

"While there will still be some residual emissions, largely due to energy consumption, these will continue to fall year-on-year as the UK's power grid shifts towards renewable energy sources, in line with the Government's 2050 net zero target".

"As this is a major construction project, some disruption will unfortunately be unavoidable. While we are doing all we can to minimise the impact, there may be temporary closures and reduced access to some areas of the centres at certain times. We will share full details as soon as the construction schedule is confirmed.

"We understand how important these facilities are to our community and will keep residents and users informed throughout the project".

"We appreciate your patience and support as we carry out this landmark project — one that will bring long-term benefits for our climate, our community, and our leisure facilities".

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