Central Hall Westminster today announces that it has achieved the ECOsmart Gold Venue Award for its exemplary green credentials introduced over the last five years.
The unrivalled accreditation programme is run by Greengage Solutions, which recognises and supports eco-friendly hotels and conference venues throughout the country that meet certified standards of sustainability. Central Hall Westminster is one of only six venues in London to have achieved the Gold level award.
The industry standard accreditation is awarded to hotels and venues which meet five key areas for sustainability including; energy and water conservation; waste management and recycling; rooms and facilities; food & beverage; and corporate and social responsibility.
Central Hall Westminster achieved the coveted Gold Award for its ‘extensive measures taken to fully embrace environmental sustainability’. Over the last five years, these have included:
· Installing specially adapted taps to reduce water wastage
· Being the first venue in the country to partner with Green Tourism to launch a carbon calculator to help organisers calculate their carbon footprint and offset it via a tree-planting programme
· In conjunction with on-site catering partner, Green & Fortune, ensuring sustainable catering practises including avoiding unnecessary waste, using seasonal local produce where possible, minimising the use of packaging and bottling its own water on site
· Ensuring zero waste goes to landfill
· Installing ECO LED lights in all its meeting and event rooms
· Recycling all hardware quarterly
· Training all staff in green initiatives including reusing, recycling and the circular economy
The venue also has a dedicated green team of sustainable champions within its workforce to help drive further sustainability initiatives forward.
To achieve the Gold standard, Central Hall Westminster went through a rigorous audit by Greengage Solutions who take an objective and detailed look at each application.
Andrew Perolls, CEO of Greengage Solutions, comments: “We applaud Central Hall Westminster for taking extensive measures to fully embrace sustainability and corporate social responsibility. Achieving our ECOsmart Award at this level is exceptional. We were impressed with the dedication to introducing green initiatives throughout all areas of operation, from catering to recycling. It is clear that being an environmentally-friendly venue is in its DNA.”
Paul Southern, Managing Director of Central Hall Westminster, concludes: “We are delighted to have achieved the coveted ECOsmart Gold Award and as a not-for-profit organisation which exists to maintain our beautiful early 20th century building and donate to charitable works around the world, being eco-friendly is hugely important to us. We are proud of the dedication staff and suppliers have put into this to make it happen and we will continue to look at ways to become an even greener venue in the future.”
