Ask your local council to put heat pumps under parks

Whether it’s pushing your kids on the swings, joining a Park Run, or getting your mates together for a BBQ, local parks benefit everyone. 

But did you know they could also be helping the climate by providing clean heat to nearby buildings?

We’ve been working with Hackney council and energy experts Scene to investigate installing heat pumps in parks to keep local buildings warm. We looked at all the parks and green spaces in the borough and found the sites where a heat pump would work best. One of those was Abney Park, where a heat pump will keep the new cafe and classroom warm. Based on what we learned in Hackney, we are now developing a toolkit so that other parks authorities can do the same. 

The toolkit will be released in the Summer, but in the meantime, why not contact your local councillors and ask them to make heat pumps under parks a reality in your area? 

Not sure how to start the conversation? 

We’ve got plenty of resources to help.

  • Download our Powering Parks report and if you’re impressed by our findings, ask your local councillor for a meeting to discuss what you’ve learned. The report shows how putting heat pumps beneath our parks and playing fields could supply enough clean heat to keep the equivalent of 5 million homes warm. This would save a massive 8 million tonnes of carbon emissions each year, helping us to tackle climate change, improve air quality and generate income for councils and park authorities to re-invest locally.

  • Has your councillor agreed to a meeting? If you need some advice on how to get the most out of your conversation, check out our blogpost on how to talk to your MP - the same tips apply to councillors.

  • Conversation gone well? Make sure to put your councillor in touch with Neil (neil@wearepossible.org) if they’d like to be one of the first to receive our new toolkit - a step-by-step guide to implementing heat pump projects in parks in their wards.

energySkye Goldingenergy, powering parks