Climate Change blog - introducing ADEPT's new Climate Change Board
In this month’s blog, Policy Officer, David Dale, introduces ADEPT’s new Climate Change Board, which has been set up to be the voice of ADEPT when speaking on strategic climate change issues.
ADEPT’s new Climate Change Board will be outward-facing towards government and our partners within and beyond the local authority sector. It will provide a forum for Place Directors and ADEPT’s other subject and regional Boards to raise issues and lobby to influence national climate policy and delivery. The new Board will engage with national bodies including the Local Net Zero Forum (LNZF), the Local Adaptation Advisory Panel (LAAP), the Climate Change Committee (CCC) and the Local Government Association (LGA). It will collaborate with a range of partners, including the Blueprint Coalition, to do this.
Role of the Climate Change board
In practical terms, the Board will provide advice and support to ADEPT’s representatives on the LNZF and the LAAP, and offer to contribute to work commissioned by these bodies. It will lobby government departments to take a joined-up approach to local climate action, both mitigation and adaptation. It will engage with the CCC and other statutory bodies where they are seeking input in relation to the role of local authorities in delivering net zero and resilient places.
The Board won’t try to provide operational advice and support to local authorities on climate change or be a network for local authority senior climate change managers – these are already ably provided by the LGA and its Climate Action Group. Other organisations such as UK100 also offer similar forums and services. This means that there are already good opportunities for colleagues to network, highlight case studies, share best practice, and discuss operational issues around the delivery of local climate actions – ADEPT is being careful not to duplicate any of these.
Climate Change Board membership
Members of the Board include ADEPT’s representatives on the LNZF and the Chair of the LAAP (Nigel Riglar and Andy Gutherson respectively), the Chair of Environment Board (Carolyn McKenzie), the Chair of Energy & Clean Growth Working Group (Sheryl French), and our lead members on the LGA and UK100 climate groups (Julie Greaves and Ariane Crampton). Plus existing subject and regional Boards have been invited to nominate a representative to ensure that the work of the Climate Change Board is reflected back into the work of these other Boards.
The new Board will meet quarterly or thereabouts and dates will be arranged around the scheduled LNZF and LAAP meetings to best support ADEPT representatives there. The first meeting is due soon, following which the full terms of reference for the Board will be signed off and published on the ADEPT website.
The board information is available on the Climate Change board page.
Further information
- For more information on ADEPT's climate change work, please take a look at the climate change hub.