From their site in Fontmell Magna, Springhead Trust run a rural centre for creative and sustainable living.   The charity’s mission is to encourage people of all ages and backgrounds to experience and value the rural environment and to learn about the sustainable use of natural resources.

A key objective at Springhead is to practice and demonstrate techniques and principles associated with a more sustainable way of life.  Prior to seeking support from Low Carbon Dorset the trust had already invested in a number of renewable energy measures. These included a hydro turbine which takes advantage of the year-round flow of water from the lake at Springhead and a ground mounted solar PV array.

However, their inefficient and draughty buildings were proving to be a big challenge on their road to becoming net-zero and this is where Low Carbon Dorset was able to help.  We were able to recommend and support several bespoke measures that would help improve the energy efficiency of their buildings and reduce their emissions.

Part of Springhead Trust’s holistic approach to energy efficiency involved installing a range of roof, ceiling and floor insulation to improve the thermal efficiency of their buildings.  This new insulation will help retain warmth in the winter, and keep the buildings cool in the summer.  Due to the historic nature of some of the buildings, access to certain floor areas to insulate proved difficult. However, installers were able to work around this and instead insulate from below and by doing so demonstrated that even old historic buildings can benefit from simple energy efficiency measures – and in an environmentally friendly way too.  Springhead were keen for their insulation to be as eco-friendly as possible, so, where feasible they used a Knauff earth wool which is manufactured from recycled glass.

To reduce their energy demand Springhead replaced old inefficient lighting with 139 highly efficient LEDs.  This measure alone will save the trust just over £1,000 a year in reduced electricity bills.

The Springhead site dates back to the 1600s and the buildings have significant historic importance.  This rules out replacing existing single glazed windows with newer units.  However, the Trust were able to find a more bespoke solution to prevent heat loss through their old windows by simply installing lightweight aluminium secondary glazing.  This additional glazing is installed inside the existing windows, posing very little aesthetic impact whilst dramatically improving the windows’ thermal efficiency.

The Trust is not stopping here, they have future plans to further reduce their site’s carbon footprint by installing a water-source heat pump and storage batteries to optimise output from their solar panels.