Small ways our colleagues and residents are embracing sustainable living

As England’s largest provider of housing and care for older people, our role is to reduce the environmental impact of our homes, buildings, and the work we do, whilst supporting residents and colleagues to embrace the transition to a low-carbon economy. 

Becky Waring is a Service Improvement Advisor at Anchor and is sharing the small changes she has made to her everyday life to live more sustainably. 

Last year when the big supermarkets were struggling to maintain a supply of certain fruit and vegetables, I jokingly suggested that I would grow my own. Fast forward a year and I have turned my small garden  into an allotment, all on a tight budget, making use of scrap wood, free compost bins and seeds from waste vegetables.

When talking about sustainability, reusing what we can is important. Scarifying our lawns and removing all the moss produces a brilliant nutrient rich liner for hanging baskets, and making use of a compost bin keeps buying bagged compost down to a minimum. 

The list of waste that you can compost is huge and includes green materials such as waste fruit and veg, grass clippings, weeds, and brown waste such as shredded paper and cardboard. You can even mix a little bit of wood ash from a bonfire through it. I personally haven’t used my council garden waste bin at all this year.

There’s nothing quite like being able to sow seeds in compost you’ve made, watching them grow and then be able to use the produce. Saving seeds from our home grown produce cuts costs of buying seeds in the future, and they are much more likely to flourish in the environment they have already grown in. 

Sustainability projects our residents are getting involved with 

Many of our care homes recently took part in a project with Pot Gang – a gardening subscription box service which sends monthly kits packed with all the tools needed to grow fruit, vegetables and seeds.  I can’t wait to see what our residents do to make use of what they have grown. 

The positive effects of gardening are far reaching as it provides opportunities to socialise, keep active, and can support our mental health and wellbeing.

Anchor’s Environmental Sustainability and Net Zero Carbon Strategy (our ‘Sustainability Strategy’) is focused on protecting the environment, reducing carbon emissions, and supporting sustainable lifestyles to limit the effects of climate change on current and future generations.

As part of our journey, we’re supporting residents and colleagues to learn about environmental sustainability and embrace the changes, and benefits of living sustainably. 

Becky Waring is a Service Improvement Advisor at Anchor