Bradford City Hall gets £2m decarbonisation grant

A West Yorkshire council has been awarded about £2m to help decarbonise its 19th Century City Hall.

The government cash would cover hot water and heating works at Bradford City Hall which, once completed, would help boost air quality and improve the health of the city's residents, according to Bradford Council.

The funding was part of a wider £15.8m government grant given to Bradford to help the city become more energy efficient, a spokesperson said.

Councillor Sarah Ferriby, portfolio holder for healthy people and places, said: "We're not just looking at making current infrastructure more sustainable, we're also keen to look at renewable energy sources too."

The authority said the planned new heating system for the grade I listed City Hall, which was built in 1873, would mean it could remove its 1.5MW gas-fired boilers - a heating system the government was trying to phase out due to its high carbon emissions.

The £2m grant would cover 88% of the adaptations, with the remaining 12% set to come from the council's Clean Air Zone funding reinvestment.

Bradford Council leader Susan Hinchcliffe said: “The heat decarbonisation and energy efficiency grants will allow us and other organisations in Bradford to contribute to start the process of decarbonisation and contribute to the district's net zero targets.”

As well as pipework improvements at the landmark building, City Hall would also be connected to the new Bradford District Heat Network, the council said.

When completed in summer 2027, the Bradford District Heat Network was expected to generate heat using one of the largest air source heat pump systems for heat networks in the UK, according to the authority.

Other Bradford organisations which have also received greener heating grants are Bradford College, HM Courts and Tribunals Service and the University of Bradford.

A Bradford Council spokesperson said: “We are looking forward to seeing the Bradford District Heat Network progress and connect to key buildings in the city that will reduce carbon emissions from heating compared to gas boilers in a scalable, affordable and proven solution to achieving net zero."

"Finding the right schemes to support and invest in is vital. These not only benefit the environment and potentially reduces costs for customers in the longer term, but also improves energy security nationally," they added.

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