A Bradley Stoke children’s playground specialist was visited by Metro Mayor Dan Norris to see how the local company is benefiting from a Green Business Grant scheme.
Pentagon Play has received a grant £3,000 from the West of England Combined Authority which is led by Metro Mayor Dan Norris. The cash injection means Pentagon Play can make energy saving improvements to their building.
The business, which designs and installs playground equipment for schools and nurseries, is using their grant to fit eco-friendly LED lighting with sensors to help save energy.
The Metro Mayor is urging more of the West of England’s small and medium-sized businesses to take advantage of grants which can make them greener and save them money. Applications for grants close on 11 July.
Metro Mayor Dan Norris said: "Protecting our planet whilst saving businesses money shouldn’t be complicated, it needs to be child’s play. I’m urging businesses across the West of England to answer the call – decisions taken now will determine what sort of world our children and grandchildren inherit. Thank you to James and the team for showing me around Pentagon Play’s HQ. I loved the obstacle course and the sturdy wooden mud kitchen. The local team was really enthusiastic and clearly proud of their work."
James Collis-Pritchard Managing Director and owner of Pentagon Play said: "Our business focuses on developing learning and play environments for children of today to make the world a better place for the adults of tomorrow. We believe we have clear responsibilities to make changes to our practices which support sustainable and green trading. As well as our lighting improvements we have also purchased EV’s to reduce our emissions and are constantly reviewing our methods and implementing changes to the way operate with the focus on reducing our carbon footprint to zero."
So far, £282k of the £1.7m Green Business Grants fund has been awarded to 33 small and medium sized businesses. Projects funded included lighting, heating, insulation and glazing.
Green Business Grants are available up to £15,000 to help small and medium sized businesses make energy saving improvements to their buildings and business operations. The grant pays for 50%-80% of costs depending on the business size, location and project. The grant is funded by the West of England Combined Authority’s Recovery Fund and the European Regional Development Fund.
On average, Green Business Grants are saving these businesses £1,700 from their annual energy bills and cutting their greenhouse gas emissions by 7 tonnes per year.
Businesses interested in a Green Business Grant can request an application pack from the West of England Growth Hub website. Improvements that can be funded include heating, lighting, glazing, insulation and efficiency equipment for manufacturing. Eligibility criteria apply.
