Edale Church Environmental Vision Statement

At Edale Parish Church:

As part of God’s creation, we commit to treating our planet with reverence and responsibility and affirm the sacred interconnectedness of all life. Our church recognises and teaches that creation care and action to address the climate and nature crises are integral to Christian faith, life and worship and has made a visible commitment to A Rocha UK’s Eco Church award scheme.

Our vision is to be a church that reflects God’s love through environmental action—reducing waste, conserving energy, and protecting biodiversity—so that future generations may rejoice in the beauty of God’s world. Our church has committed to reducing our carbon footprint year-on-year, in line with our national church’s commitment to net zero

We also envision a future where faith and ecology walk hand in hand. Our church recognises the significant contribution churches can make to the UK’s target of 30% of land protected for nature by 2030. We have established a plan to manage our land for nature to help us do this in the most impactful way.

In the face of environmental crisis, we hear God’s call to act. Our church responds to the impact of the climate and nature crises and engages with environmental and social justice issues to act locally and where possible nationally and globally. It will also promote ethical and environmentally aware consumption patterns by individuals and households.

INSIDE THE BUILDING

• A new breathable membrane material has been put in to the church roof to keep the heat in and cold out
• LED’s are now in for all internal and external lights.
• Lights inside in the welcome area and porch are sensor controlled so that lights turn off except when visitors are moving around
• New wiring helps with more sensitive controls
• All heating and electrics are on timers
• Toilets: both have dual flush
• New accessible toilet flooring has an insulated membrane
• Renewed access slabs on porch flooring are the originals replaced and now insulated under the slabs
• Walls for our new access toilet are made from recycled granite stone from a quarry within 30 miles of Edale
• Thermolite blocks in the new accessible toilet ensure highest standards of thermal conductivity, with a 50mm air gap
• Accessible toilet door has a stained glass panel cleverly recycled from a pre-existing window panel
• Catering avoids the use of plastic wherever possible
• Sustainable cleaning products are used where available

OUTSIDE THE BUILDING

• Access path raised using existing pathway kerbs
• ‘No Mow May’ has been instituted for churchyard
• Areas of the graveyard have been identified for wild flowers, wood piles have been set up to provide wildlife habitats, and swift and owl boxes have been placed on trees and at the bell tower
• A water butt collects water by the grave yard shed
• Special ‘bat tiles’ have been inserted into the roof enabling bats to roost between the roof tiles and roof felt.

ENERGY

• Renewable energy electricity supplier has been appointed
• In common with 50% of churches, Edale Parish Church has an energy rating of E, with an old oil-fired central heating system which is both expensive and noisy to run. We have established that the greenest approach is to keep this going as long as we can and then switch to an electricity-based heating system. Professional advice has been sought to establish an alternative to the existing system but solar panels could contribute. Currently we are seeking to establish whether it is viable and affordable to install 3-Phase electricity, as this will widen our heating options for the future

OTHER

We are still investigating a high-rated ethical banking resource

SUMMARY

Care for creation is one of the ‘5 Marks of Mission’ for the Church of England. We take sustainability seriously and are in the process of applying for the Bronze level of an EcoChurch award