In a bid to support the net zero efforts of the region’s SMEs, East Midlands Chamber is subsidising the cost of 400 one-year licences to access the Zellar sustainability platform.
Zellar empowers SMEs to rise to the challenge of climate change by making sustainability simple and actionable. It supports UK businesses with a single view of their emissions and with step-by-step guidance on how to become a more sustainable business.
As well as helping them calculate and manage its carbon footprint, the platform helps a business understand its performance against competitors and create a decarbonisation action plan with measurable results.
The initiative is one of several being offered as part of the East Midlands Accelerator, a £5.27m project part-funded by the Government through the UK Community Renewal Fund (UKCRF), and which has received an additional £471,000 of match funding from East Midlands Chamber and its partners.
It is being delivered in the seven areas of the East Midlands that the Government has chosen for UKCRF support – Bassetlaw, Derbyshire Dales, High Peak, Leicester city, Mansfield, Newark and Sherwood, and Nottingham city.
The first 400 businesses to sign up from an eligible UKCRF area – regardless of whether they are a Chamber member or not – will be granted a year’s fully-subsidised access to Zellar.
East Midlands Chamber deputy chief executive Diane Beresford said: “The importance of net zero to the East Midlands Accelerator project is reflected in the fact it forms one of five key strands. In fact, it’s a condition of the Accelerator grants and growth vouchers that a business commits to a sustainability plan within six months of receiving the funding.
“By helping businesses to gain green business skills, invest in net zero business practices, and access financial support to start their journey towards net zero or carbon neutrality, we’re building a much more Sustainable East Midlands. The Zellar platform is at the heart of that ambition.”
Gary Styles, CEO and founder of Zellar, added: “As a proud Leicestershire resident, I know only too well the important role that East Midlands industry plays in the national economy. From the manufacturing powerhouses of our cities to the cottage industries of the Peaks and Dales, every business can, in some way, reduce their carbon footprint.
“Businesses need and want to stand up and be counted, and change their energy-inefficient business practices, especially as energy costs are so high right now. The problem is they don’t always know how.
“East Midlands Chamber is our flagship Chamber project, and we’re delighted to be partnering in such an active, innovative region. We’ll be hosting dedicated drop-in sessions for eligible East Midlands businesses every Wednesday, and look forward to showing them how best to use Zellar to achieve their sustainability goals and build a forward-thinking sustainable business community.”
