A city-wide partnership in Oxford, is expanding to cover Oxfordshire - highlighting the growing ambition collaboration across the county to tackle carbon emissions.
The Zero Carbon Oxford Partnership (ZCOP), which was first established by Oxford City Council in 2021, will be expanding to become the Zero Carbon Oxfordshire Partnership.
Since its formation in 2021, ZCOP has been a successful in bringing together collaboration between Oxford’s large businesses and organisations across the city, working towards the ambition to achieving net zero as a city by 2040.
The partnership has generated over £1.2million in grant funding to deliver projects promoting sustainable travel, retrofitting, and industrial decarbonisation across Oxford.
Now, following the success of the partnership, the group will be expanding to tackle carbon emissions across Oxfordshire as a whole - and is seeking new partners interested in joining this effort.
Zero Carbon Oxfordshire Partnership
The new Zero Carbon Oxfordshire Partnership will consist of over 20 organisations from across Oxfordshire, bringing together a growing network of partners working towards the county becoming net zero as a whole by 2050.
The partnership - which will be interim chaired by Professor Nick Eyre - will allow large employers and organisations across Oxfordshire to collaborate to accelerate climate action across the county, harnessing skills and expertise across a range of industries, and working together to generate funding to accelerate local net zero projects.
Participating organisations include Oxford City Council, Oxfordshire County Council Cherwell District Council, West Oxfordshire District Council, as well as Enterprise Oxfordshire (previously Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership), Abingdon and Witney College, and Oxfordshire Greentech.
Together these organisations will work together towards the goal to achieve net zero across Oxfordshire by 2050, in addition to their own organisation or local decarbonisation targets.
This will be achieved through:
- Sprint (task and finish) and Working Groups: which will co-design and deliver projects to tackle climate challenges, and will facilitate low carbon development at local-scale
- Accessing grant funding: leveraging collective expertise, skills and roles locally to secure funding opportunities
- Free training and peer-to-peer learning: helping partners to increase impact by working and learning together and showcasing best practice
- Quarterly meetings and networking events: connecting a broad range of academic, technical experts and leaders
- Progress reporting: monitoring the progress against the targets and objectives
- Local & national advocacy: Collectively advocating for Oxfordshire on net zero topics and discussions
The first meeting of the new Zero Carbon Oxfordshire Partnership Steering Group, which will provide strategic direction to the Partnership’s activities, was held at Abingdon & Witney college on 12 March - formally launching the partnership.
For more information about the Zero Carbon Oxfordshire Partnership website.
If you are a large or influential organisation in Oxfordshire, and want to explore potential involvement please email the ZCOP team.
Comment
“Expanding the Zero Carbon Oxford Partnership to cover all of Oxfordshire is a crucial step in scaling up climate action across the county. The partnership has always focused on bringing together businesses and organisations to tackle the challenges of decarbonisation, and by broadening its reach, it can harness even more expertise, innovation, and collaboration. Achieving net zero will require collective action across industries, organisations, and sectors. This expansion enables us to build on the great work already happening across the county, create new opportunities, and drive the ambitious change needed to meet Oxfordshire’s climate goals.”
Nick Eyre, Interim Chair of the Zero Carbon Oxfordshire Partnership, Emeritus Professor of Energy and Climate Policy, and Supernumerary Fellow of Oriel College
"I am delighted that we will be expanding the success of the Zero Carbon Oxford Partnership to the whole County. We need action at every level to tackle the climate emergency, and this partnership will allow us to share knowledge, ambition, and create more opportunities for our city and county. Can’t wait to see the partnership go from strength to strength.”
Councillor Anna Railton, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Zero Carbon Oxford, Oxford City Council
“The Zero Carbon Oxford Partnership has paved the way for collaboration across sectors, industries and communities and provided a forum to tackle a range of issues and their intersection with the climate crisis. As the vital need for global action increases, expanding ZCOP to a countywide partnership is an urgent and necessary step up in Oxfordshire's climate response.”
Councillor Dr Pete Sudbury, Deputy Leader of Oxfordshire County Council with Responsibility for Climate Change, Environment and Future Generations
"West Oxfordshire District Council is proud to join forces with partners across the county to accelerate climate action. Tackling the climate emergency requires strong collaboration, and by expanding the Zero Carbon Oxfordshire Partnership, we are strengthening our shared commitment to achieving net zero. This partnership will enable us to harness expertise, unlock funding, and take impactful steps towards a greener, more sustainable future for all our Oxfordshire communities."
Councillor Andrew Prosser, West Oxfordshire District Council’s Executive Member for Climate Action and Nature recovery
"SSEN is committed to propelling our business forward to achieve our sustainability ambitions whilst also supporting our customers and suppliers during the net zero transition. We’re delighted to be part of ZCOP, driving the energy transition to ensure a sustainable future with organisations across Oxfordshire."
Andrew Wainwright, Whole System Manager at SSEN
“Net zero is an opportunity to save energy, waste, and money for businesses and residents, but the challenge is complex, and so demands collaboration. Cherwell has made great progress on securing grants to make its leisure centres more efficient, has reduced emissions from its fleet, and through its local plan, is set to establish very high standards for developments, that will help achieve net zero. By collaborating with our neighbours and drawing on the skills and desire for action that exist across various sectors, we expect to be able to further reduce the district’s carbon emissions and help protect our area for the benefit of future generations.”
Councillor Tom Beckett, Cherwell District Council’s Portfolio Holder for Greener Communities
Members of the expanded Zero Carbon Oxfordshire Partnership are:
- Abingdon and Witney College
- Activate Learning
- BMW MINI
- Cherwell District Council
- Enterprise Oxfordshire (previously Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership)
- Landsec
- Low Carbon Hub
- Lucy Group
- Nielsen
- Oxfam
- Oxford Brookes
- Oxford Bus Company
- Oxford City Council
- Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust
- Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- Oxfordshire County Council
- Oxfordshire Greentech
- River Learning Trust
- Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN)
- Stagecoach in Oxfordshire
- Unipart
- University of Oxford
- West Oxfordshire District Council
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