Our Journey to a Greener Stage
Our Victorian theatre is stepping into a sustainable future. We’ve already transformed our Front of House, but now we’re extending that commitment to the very heart of the building—the auditorium and backstage areas. Our goal is to prove that heritage and high-efficiency can live side-by-side, creating a carbon-neutral home for the arts in Earlsdon.
We have big plans and are busy applying for grants and fundraising to achieve our aims:
Towards Being Carbon-Neutral
The first act of this transformation begins with a complete energy overhaul. We want to retire our 19th-century fossil-fuel heating system and replacing it with a high-efficiency, HVAC system. By pairing this with specialist thermal insulation in the roof and auditorium, we are trying to ensure that every watt of energy is used effectively to keep our visitors and volunteers comfortable year-round.
We also want to install a solar array on our South-East facing solar array. This could generate up to 20% more power than we consume. This surplus will allow us to become a net contributor to the Coventry grid, effectively erasing our operational carbon footprint.
Enhancing Bio-diversity: Our vision extends beyond the building's walls. We want to transform our external spaces, first by making the best use of our car park by installing bird boxes on the adjacent walls, planters on the space at the entrance, and transform the car park margins to provide 'insect hotels'. We also want to enhance biodiversity at the rear by clearing the waste ground and planting native wildflowers and installing nesting boxes for local Swifts and Sparrows. While we are limited in what we can do in the way of natural habitat, we want to support priority species of our local landscape where we can.
Following the Theatre Green Book
We have signed up to be part of the Theatre Green Book, an industry-wide initiative to work more sustainably in response to the climate crisis. It is a free resource for everyone in the performing arts, working in any role and at all scales, providing a framework for planning, best practice guidance, a measurement system and shared standards.
We have moved through Preliminary to Basic standard, and hope to move to Intermediate standard in the coming years.
Our Green Team
Are you interested in being a green volunteer? Get in contact with us at info@criteriontheatre.co.uk to find out about all kinds of new volunteering opportunities, from energy and wildlife monitoring, recycling and planting.