The Environment, Climate Change and Transport Scrutiny Committee met to discuss household recycling rates and waste reduction, and to review the borough's progress towards its net zero carbon targets. Councillors agreed to a Scrutiny Initiation Document (SID) to investigate the plateauing of household recycling rates, and heard updates on climate action progress, including transport, building decarbonisation, and green initiatives. The committee also agreed to their work plan for the coming year.

Household Recycling Rates and Waste Reduction

The committee agreed to a Scrutiny Initiation Document (SID) to investigate the plateau in household recycling rates and identify strategies for improvement. The review aims to understand the reasons behind the stagnation, evaluate current recycling initiatives, and develop evidence-based recommendations for enhancing recycling performance across the borough.

The review will focus on household waste and recycling collected from households and communal facilities, but will not include commercial waste collections, recycling educational activities in schools (unless impacting household rates), or the North London Joint Waste Strategy¹ or waste disposal facilities (unless impacting household rates). Key questions to be addressed in the review include:

• Factors contributing to the plateau in recycling rates
• Effectiveness of current recycling initiatives across different housing types
• Impactful behaviour change strategies
• Service design improvements to support recycling participation
• Financial and resource implications of proposed changes

The committee will receive evidence from various sources, including:

• Internal council officers such as Matthew Homer (Head of Waste Strategy), Bill Sinfield (Street Operations Services), Jean Hughes and Pavel Ryczan (Recycling Team), Emlyn Bailey (Corporate Communications) and Spencer Reynolds/Mwawa Latib/Abdoullie Jallow (Data and performance)
• External organisations such as ReLondon² and the North London Waste Authority
• Recycling champions and community groups
• Environmental groups

The agreed review timetable includes several meetings dedicated to specific aspects of the topic, including data and performance, communications and behaviour change, and collection services and methods. The committee also plans to conduct site visits to a Biffa sorting facility and the Hornsey Street Waste Recycling Centre.

Net Zero Carbon and Climate Action

The committee received the Q1/2 report on Net Zero Carbon and Climate Action, which provided an update on the borough's progress towards its climate goals.

Emissions Data

The report included the latest emissions data, which showed that transport emissions have substantially decreased, likely due to council policies and a shift towards hybrid working. Emissions from electricity continue to decrease due to the national grid's shift towards renewable energy sources. However, emissions from gas have decreased, potentially due to the energy crisis and cost of living, rather than specific council policies.

Workstream Performance

The report assessed the performance of various workstreams related to climate action, including:

Sustainable and Affordable Energy

• Heat and Energy Networks: Work is underway to develop a heat network strategy, with the expansion of the Bunhill Heat Network to connect City Forum and Telfor House, adding 1,000 homes.
• Renewable Heat and Electricity: Round 6 of the Islington Community Energy Fund (ICEF) is complete, and the council is considering how to support renewables and community energy going forward.
• Affordable and Renewable Energy, Fuel Poverty, and Energy Efficiency: The Seasonal Health Intervention Network (SHINE) and energy advice service received over 2,370 referrals, resulting in £251,000 savings from energy doctor measures benefiting 1,068 households.

Buildings, Housing, Commercial and Infrastructure

• Decarbonising Council Homes: Low carbon retrofit work continues on the Harvist Estate, and the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF) Wave 2 project is on track to be completed by September 2025.
• Decarbonising Corporate Buildings: Energy Monitoring and Targeting (M&T) programme has assessed 77% of corporate sites and 89% of schools, with schools saving between 25 and 30% on energy costs.
• Net Zero Homes for the Future: New Build: The Vorley Road ultra-low energy pilot is delayed by a year and has undergone further redesign to improve viability.
• Decarbonising Private Buildings: A domestic retrofit campaign will launch later this year, and the energy efficiency grants scheme for small businesses has seen 41 approvals for installations to date.

Transport and Active Travel

• Reducing Carbon Emissions from Transport: Liveable Neighbourhoods (LNs) cover 24% of the borough, and new school streets and accessibility improvements are being implemented.
• Transition to Electric Vehicles: 109 on-street lamp column EV charging points were added, and a new trial of smart charging has been implemented at Pritchard Court.

Natural Environment

• Greener Together Programme: The Islington Greener Together scheme continues, and the council added a record 694 (net) new trees across the borough in 2023/24.

Green Economy

• Supporting Sustainability, Retrofit and Decarbonisation: The Islington Sustainability Network (ISN) has expanded to 160 members, and a 'climate business resilience toolkit' is being developed.
• Green Skills and Jobs: The council held two Youth Green Skills Fairs and organised Understanding Domestic Retrofit Level 2 Courses.

Communications and Engagement

• The Islington Climate Panel launched its final report, and in-person training for council staff on environmental implications has been rolled out.

Finance and Investment

• Continued work on Islington's Net Zero Project Pipeline with The GLA and London Councils, and supported the latest budget proposals which includes £33.499m capital investment for Climate Action.

Key Performance Indicators

The report included a summary of key performance indicators (KPIs) for various workstreams. Some highlights include:

• 26.9% of the council fleet is fully electric (owned)
• 605 Electric Vehicle Charging Points (EVCPs)
• 505 cycle parking facilities on the streets (hangars)
• 98 Killed or Seriously Injured in road traffic incidents (KSI) in 2023
• 694 net new council-owned trees
• 3,035 sqm of new green space
• 28.2% of household waste recycled and composted (Q1-Q3)

Issues and Concerns

Despite the progress made, the report also highlighted some challenges and areas of concern:

• The development of a housing stock retrofit implementation plan is on hold.
• The Vorley Road ultra-low energy pilot is delayed.
• The KPI for cycle parking facilities on the streets (hangars) was not met.
• The KPI for the percentage of household waste recycled and composted is below target.
• Litter cleanliness, fly-posting cleanliness, and graffiti cleanliness LEQS surveys are below target.

Committee Work Plan 2025-26

The committee agreed to its work plan for the coming year, which includes the following topics:

• Scrutiny Topic Witness Evidence
• Executive Member for Environment and Transport Annual Report
• Climate Panel progress
• 12 Month Update on Scrutiny Review of 2023-4: Active Travel
• Lime and Forest Bike to present
• Bi-Yearly (Q3/4) report on Net Zero Carbon and Climate Action
• An update on the SPD
• Scrutiny Review: Draft Recommendations
• North London Waste Authority Annual Update
• SHINE services presentation
• Annual update on Leisure facilities

The committee also scheduled a special Climate Emergency Public Meeting for 10 March 2026.