Warwickshire County Council

Climate · drafted 2026-07-01 · accepted · 23 finding(s)

← council-level findings on this theme

12 Jun 2025Warwickshire's Cabinet Year-End Integrated Performance Report (June 2025) reported that tree planting against the Council's commitment to plant one tree for every resident was behind target, attributed to a lack of available land, not a decision to cut or drop the target. [1]

22 Jul 2025In contrast to the councils that rescinded, Warwickshire County Council carried a motion to reaffirm its Climate Emergency. Considering a Green motion 'Supporting Climate Emergency Declaration in Warwickshire' (moved by Councillor Will Roberts, seconded by Councillor Jennifer McAllister) and accepting a 'friendly' amendment on energy security and ethical supply chains, the council resolved to 'Continue to recognise the climate emergency unanimously declared in 2019' and to re-establish a cross-party climate working group. [2][3][4][5]

22 Jul 2025Leader Councillor George Finch stated during the 22 July 2025 County Council meeting that the Reform administration's manifesto was to cut the net zero agenda, with savings to be made in that area. [6]

15 Aug 2025Warwickshire County Council is not a Local Plan-making authority: Local Plans in its area are made by the constituent district/borough councils (e.g. Rugby Borough Council), with the County acting only as a statutory consultee that comments on and approves consultation responses to district Local Plans (e.g. the County's response to Rugby BC's Local Plan 'Preferred Options' review, approved by the Portfolio Holder for Transport and Planning on 15 August 2025). No evidence was found in the searched Warwickshire CC corpus (portfolio holder decisions, cabinet, full council and scrutiny minutes, July 2025-May 2026) of the County removing, diluting or declining to adopt net-zero, low-carbon or above-Building-Regs energy-efficiency housing standards; the County's comments on the Rugby BC Local Plan concerned growth distribution/greenbelt, not energy-efficiency standards. [7]

23 Sep 2025Warwickshire County Council increased its Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) commitment rather than cutting it: on 10 July 2025 Cabinet approved an extra £5.935million in BSIP/Enhanced Partnership capital funding for 2025-26 (up from an earlier £3.662million allocation), and on 23 September 2025 full Council approved the addition of this capital funding, moved by the Portfolio Holder for Transport and Planning Councillor Jennifer Warren and seconded by Councillor Stuart Green, with the vote carried unanimously. [8][9][10]

16 Dec 2025At its full-council meeting of 16 December 2025, Warwickshire County Council watered down a road-safety motion so that a proposed rollout of 20mph limits around schools became only a review of existing criteria. An amendment (proposed by Councillor Jan Matecki, seconded by the Reform Leader of the Council, Councillor George Finch) struck out the motion's call for 'the introduction of 20mph limits ... on all roads adjacent to educational establishments during peak school traffic times' and replaced it with a commitment to 'Review the current criteria ... for setting 20mph speed limits and assess how these are applied to roads adjacent to schools'. Finch said he had been unable to support the original motion because of the budget setting and potential expenditure its wording implied but supported the amendment; the amendment was accepted as friendly and the amended motion was carried unanimously. [11][12][13][14]

5 Feb 2026At the 5 Feb 2026 County Council budget meeting, the Green Group's budget amendment (moved by Cllr Jonathan Chilvers, seconded by Cllr Mark Stevens) proposed extra investment in solar/renewable energy generation and storage on the council estate, plus retention of the council's climate change team, as part of its 'climate resilience' priority against the Reform UK administration's budget; the amendment was defeated 6 votes to 42. [15][16][17]

5 Feb 2026A Reform councillor (Neil Garland) confirmed the Reform UK 2026/27 budget itself delivered savings 'in the climate change service'; a further Joint Liberal Democrat/Green amendment at the reconvened 17 Feb 2026 meeting, which would have retained climate-team funding and created space for investment in local energy generation, was also defeated (19 to 24) before the Reform UK budget (without that investment) was adopted. [18][19][20]

25 Feb 2026Warwickshire County Council did not pause, cancel or decline public EV charging funding: in November 2025 officers reported that a Midlands Connect consortium bid had secured government funding including £3.3m for Warwickshire under the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund to deliver around 1,100 charge points, and by February 2026 the council was in the final stages of contract negotiations with the LEVI supplier with installation due to begin in summer 2026. This does NOT count toward the rollback figure — it is a continuation/expansion of EV charging funding, not a pause, cancellation or decline. [21][22]

25 Feb 2026At the 25 Feb 2026 Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee, in response to a question from Cllr Jonathan Chilvers about delays to the council's climate-related work, Director Steve Smith confirmed the estates management plan (covering solar and heat pump installation on council buildings) was delayed, with decisions on decarbonising the council's own estate contingent on capital availability and assessed site-by-site rather than committed. [23]

25 Feb 2026Warwickshire County Council's Communities Overview & Scrutiny Committee received a dedicated 'Annual Sustainable Futures Report' each February (last seen 26 Feb 2025, presented by the Head of Climate Change and Sustainability, covering net-zero targets, carbon literacy status and carbon-emission reduction progress) before the May 2025 Reform takeover. In the equivalent slot one year later (25 Feb 2026), no standalone Annual Sustainable Futures Report was presented; climate performance instead appeared only within the general Quarter 3 Integrated Performance Report, where officers confirmed council climate strategies (fleet decarbonisation, estates decarbonisation, tree/woodland) were delayed and three climate-change measures were rated underachieving/challenging. [24][25][26]

17 Mar 2026Warwickshire County Council's dedicated climate governance body, the Climate Emergency Cross-Party Working Group, continued to operate under the Reform administration rather than being abolished or downgraded. At the County Council meeting on 17 March 2026, Councillor Will Roberts moved and Councillor Darren Cheshire seconded a recommendation that Council endorse the Working Group's report; Roberts explained the cross-party group had been established to understand the Council's activity on climate change and delivering the Sustainable Futures Strategy, and Council agreed the Working Group would provide a further update to full Council on 15 December 2026. [27][28][29]

17 Mar 2026On 17 March 2026 Warwickshire County Council carried, by a majority, a 'Restore Britain Group Motion' moved by Councillor Scott Cameron and seconded by Councillor Luke Cooper, whose adopted text states that productive farmland must be protected from the installation of solar farms (alongside mass housing / industrial development), on food-security and rural-economy grounds. [30][31]

1 Apr 2026Rather than scaling back bus service ambition, on 1 April 2026 the Portfolio Holder for Transport and Planning approved submitting an Expression of Interest to the Department for Transport's Bus Franchising Support Fund for up to £500,000, to fund a pre-feasibility assessment of franchising models for Warwickshire bus services. [32][33]

16 Apr 2026On 16 April 2026 Warwickshire County Council's Cabinet adopted its statutory Local Nature Recovery Strategy on schedule; Portfolio Holder for Environment, Heritage and Culture Councillor Darren Cheshire introduced it as a framework to reverse biodiversity loss and strengthen the natural environment, and Cabinet resolved to adopt the LNRS as recommended — a continuation of the statutory duty, not a delay or scaling back. [34][35]

11 May 2026Cabinet on 11 May 2026 endorsed the FINAL, adopted version of the Council Plan 2026-30 for onward consideration by full Council on 14 May 2026, confirming the net-zero de-emphasis carried through from the draft into the adopted plan: opposition Councillor Jonathan Chilvers objected that the final version still gave insufficient attention to climate change, and Leader Councillor George Finch replied that improved outcomes were not to be achieved solely via net zero measures. [36][37][38]

11 May 2026At the same 11 May 2026 Cabinet meeting, Councillor David Curtis noted that the Council Plan's 'vibrant places, safe communities and environment' engagement-survey focus area had been renamed 'proud places and safe communities' in the adopted Plan, removing the explicit reference to the environment, a rewording that had not itself been put to public engagement. [39]

Rather than abolishing a dedicated climate body, the Reform administration reported setting one up: at Cabinet on 13 November 2025, in response to questions on climate performance, Councillor Finch advised that a Climate Change Working Group had been established, comprising councillors from all parties. [40]

An amendment by Councillor Jerry Roodhouse (seconded by Councillor Ben Edwards) that sought to remove the wording protecting farmland from solar-farm installation was defeated by a majority and the substantive motion was then carried; the debate expressly recorded concern about removing the solar-farm protection. [41][42]

At the Warwickshire Local Pension Board's review of the Fund's Responsible Investment Policy, officers reported no amendments were needed to that policy, but the Fund's climate risk policy and voting guidelines were amended to align with pool operator Border to Coast, adding a new commitment to act against companies exposed to deforestation risk -- a strengthening, not a weakening, of the Fund's climate-risk/responsible-investment stance. No published Pension Fund Investment Sub-Committee, Staff and Pensions Committee, or Local Pension Board minutes in the corpus (covering meetings from March 2025 to March 2026) record a vote to weaken a net-zero investment target or reject/vote down fossil-fuel divestment. [43]

At the November 2025 Cabinet meeting, Councillor Sarah Boad raised the shortfall in tree planting and asked what Cabinet planned to do about it; Portfolio Holder for Environment Councillor Darren Cheshire responded that sourcing land for planting had proven challenging but called it 'a work in progress', and separately Communities Overview and Scrutiny heard (26 Nov 2025) that the forestry team was expanding a tree nursery project to grow saplings cost-effectively -- indicating the programme was being sustained/expanded rather than abandoned or reduced. [44][45]

Warwickshire County Council's declared climate targets, as set out in the Annual Sustainable Futures Report presented to the Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee (Feb 2025), were to reach net zero as a council by 2030 and net zero across the county by 2050. [46]

In the Reform administration's draft 'Recalibrating Warwickshire - Council Plan 2026-30', introduced by Leader Councillor George Finch and approved by Cabinet (5 March 2026) for public engagement, the Plan included a review of the council's previous Net Zero commitments and shifted emphasis away from the net-zero target towards lower bills, cleaner rivers and reduced flooding. [47]

References (47)
  1. Minutes, 12 June 2025 “was also behind target, which appeared to be as a result of the unavailability of suitable land”
  2. Minutes, 22 July 2025 “Supporting Climate Emergency Declaration in Warwickshire”
  3. Minutes, 22 July 2025 “Councillor Will Roberts moved the following motion, which was seconded by Councillor Jennifer McAllister”
  4. Minutes, 22 July 2025 “Continue to recognise the climate emergency unanimously declared in 2019 by Warwickshire County Council”
  5. Minutes, 16 December 2025 “The motion was carried”
  6. Minutes, 22 July 2025 “the Reform manifesto was to cut the net zero agenda and expenditure on diversity, equality and inclusion initiatives and savings would be made in these areas as a result”
  7. Minutes, 15 August 2025 “Local Planning Authorities such as RBC, have a legal duty to produce a Local Plan, outlining how planning will be managed for their area. Local Plans are prepared in consultation with residents, businesses and other stakeholders, including other local authorities in the area, in this case the County Council.”
  8. Minutes, 23 September 2025 “Councillor Jennifer Warren, Portfolio Holder for Transport and Planning, moved the recommendation as set out in the report which sought an addition to the capital programme of £5.935 million BSIP Capital Funding for 2025-26 received from the Department of Transport to support the vision set out in the Warwickshire BSIP and to deliver a programme of associated prioritised capital measures. Councillor Stuart Green seconded the proposal.”
  9. Minutes “Vote A vote was held. The motion was carried unanimously.”
  10. Decisions, 23 September 2025 “That Council approves the addition to the Capital Programme of £5.935million in capital funding for 2025-26 received from the Department for Transport (DfT) for the delivery of a programme of prioritised capital measures taken from the Warwickshire Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) and the Warwickshire Enhanced Partnership (EP) Scheme.”
  11. Minutes, 16 December 2025 “The introduction of 20mph limits or advisory speed limits of 20mph on all roads adjacent to educational establishments during peak school traffic times”
  12. Decisions, 16 December 2025 “Review the current criteria used by Warwickshire County Council for setting 20mph speed limits and assess how these are applied to roads adjacent to schools”
  13. Minutes, 16 December 2025 “due to the proximity of budget setting and the potential expenditure required as a result of the original wording, he had been unable to support the original Motion but he was supportive of the amendment”
  14. Minutes, 16 December 2025 “A vote was then held on the substantive motion which was carried unanimously”
  15. Minutes, 5 February 2026 “Highlighted sustainable investments in active travel and solar energy generation and storage, noting these would deliver ongoing savings through reduced energy costs.”
  16. Minutes, 5 February 2026 “investment in local energy generation and storage, and retention of the climate change team.”
  17. Minutes, 5 February 2026 “The results were 6 votes in favour, 42 votes against and 1 abstention. The amendment was defeated.”
  18. Minutes, 5 February 2026 “Highlighted identified savings, including waste management, efficiencies in communications and ICT, and in the climate change service.”
  19. Minutes, 17 February 2026 “He noted that the amendment retained funding for the climate team and created space for investment in flood resilience and local energy generation.”
  20. Minutes, 17 February 2026 “The results were 19 votes in favour, 24 votes against and 2 abstentions. The amendment was defeated.”
  21. Minutes “A Midlands Connect consortium had secured £40m regionally, including £3.3m for Warwickshire, expected to deliver around 1,100 charge points (2,000 sockets) over four years.”
  22. Minutes, 25 February 2026 “the Council was in the final stages of contract negotiations with the new LEVI supplier and expected to deliver around 1,000 new charging units”
  23. Minutes, 25 February 2026 “decisions on decarbonising buildings would depend on capital availability, with technologies such as solar and heat pumps to be assessed on a site-by-site basis.”
  24. Minutes “The Annual Sustainable Futures Report was presented by Sarah Stear, Head of Climate Change and Sustainability and outlined the three key ambitions of the Council.”
  25. Minutes, 25 February 2026 “Steve Smith reported that the fleet decarbonisation strategy, estates management plan, and tree and woodland strategy were all in progress at varying stages.”
  26. Minutes, 25 February 2026 “the three underachieving measures relate to climate change”
  27. Minutes, 17 March 2026 “Councillor Will Roberts moved the recommendation as set out in the report. In doing so, he explained that the cross-party group had been established to understand the Council’s activity in addressing climate change and delivering the Sustainable Futures Strategy.”
  28. Document “Councillor Darren Cheshire seconded the recommendation and reserved the right to speak.”
  29. Document “Endorses the next steps set out in the report prior to the Climate Emergency Cross-Party Working Group providing an update to full Council at its meeting on 15 December 2026.”
  30. Minutes “Restore Britain Group Motion Councillor Scott Cameron moved the following Motion, seconded by Councillor Luke Cooper who reserved his right to speak.”
  31. Decisions, 17 March 2026 “Productive farmland must be protected from mass housing / industrial development and the installation of solar farms whilst ensuring farmers are more easily able to diversify”
  32. Minutes, 1 April 2026 “The funding will enable WCC to undertake a franchising pre-feasibility assessment, gathering evidence on the costs and benefits of franchising models for Warwickshire and helping to determine whether franchising is the most suitable model for delivery of bus services in the County.”
  33. Minutes, 1 April 2026 “approves the submission of Warwickshire County Council’s Expression of Interest (EOI) to the Department for Transport’s Bus Franchising Support Fund and endorses the request for up to £500,000 (amount TBC) to undertake a Franchising Pre-Feasibility Assessment”
  34. Minutes, 16 April 2026 “Councillor Darren Cheshire, Portfolio Holder for Environment, Heritage and Culture, introduced the report. He stated that the Warwickshire Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) provided a practical, locally grounded framework to reverse biodiversity loss, restore habitats and strengthen the natural environment across the county.”
  35. Minutes, 16 April 2026 “Resolved That Cabinet adopts the Warwickshire Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) attached at Appendix 1 to the report.”
  36. Minutes, 11 May 2026 “The Leader, Councillor George Finch, introduced this report seeking Cabinet’s endorsement of the final version of the Council Plan for 2026-30 for onward consideration by full Council on 14 May 2026”
  37. Minutes, 11 May 2026 “Councillor Jonathan Chilvers expressed disappointment that the final version of the Council Plan did not fully reflect the views of Council or the comments made by overview and scrutiny committees. He stated that this was most pronounced in the level of attention given to climate change, which he considered insufficiently addressed.”
  38. Minutes, 11 May 2026 “He emphasised that improved outcomes could be achieved through a range of measures and were not limited to increased adoption of solar panels or a focus on net zero emissions.”
  39. Minutes, 11 May 2026 “this focus area had been renamed “proud places and safe communities” in the Plan, removing explicit reference to the environment”
  40. Document “Councillor Finch advised that a Climate Change Working Group had been set up, comprising of Councillors from all parties including himself as well as Councillors Cheshire and Garland.”
  41. Minutes “The Amendment was defeated by a majority vote. A vote was then held on the substantive Motion which was carried by a majority.”
  42. Minutes “Concerns were expressed about the wording of the Amendment, particularly regarding the removal of wording which sought the protection of farmland from the installation of solar farms.”
  43. Minutes “There had been no amendments to the policy following the review, although there had been some changes to related policies. These were the climate risk policy and the voting guidelines, which had been amended so as to align to the policies of Border to Coast. This meant action would now be taken against companies where the Fund held investments that were exposed to a deforestation risk.”
  44. Minutes “it had proven challenging to source the land for planting, recognising the responsibility for biodiversity but this was a work in progress”
  45. Document “was expanding a tree nursery project to grow saplings cost-effectively”
  46. Minutes “To become a net zero council by 2030, to become a net zero county by 2050 and adapt our services and communities to be able cope with climate change.”
  47. Minutes “It also included a review of previous commitments relating to Net Zero and the climate emergency, with a renewed emphasis on delivering lower bills, cleaner rivers, and reduced flooding.”