At Chiltern Music Therapy, we are dedicated to not only transforming lives through music but also ensuring our operations are environmentally sustainable. We are excited to share the highlights from our 2023-2024 Environmental Report, showcasing our commitment and progress in reducing our carbon footprint.
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Our Commitment to Sustainability

The world continues to face a climate and health emergency, with climate change being described as "the greatest threat to global health of the 21st century" by The Lancet. Recognising the urgency of this crisis, Chiltern Music Therapy has committed to reducing our environmental impact and acting in a sustainable manner. Our Environmental Policy and Action Plan, established in September 2021, reflects this commitment.

This report marks our second full year of carbon emissions data, covering the period from April 2023 to March 2024. It builds on the baseline figures published in the previous year, providing a comprehensive overview of our environmental performance and outlining the steps we have taken to reduce our carbon footprint.

We are eager to share this report with our community, stakeholders, and fellow music therapy organisations. By doing so, we hope to inspire others to join us in our journey towards sustainability and to foster a broader dialogue on the importance of environmental responsibility in our sector. Sharing our findings, successes, and challenges transparently is a crucial part of our commitment to sustainability. We believe that collective action and knowledge sharing are essential in addressing the global climate crisis.
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Key Achievements and Data

Reduction in Carbon Emissions: Over the past year, we have significantly reduced our total carbon footprint from 39.14 to 32.29 metric tons of CO2 equivalent (tCO2e), a decrease of 17.5%. This achievement is primarily due to a reduction in staff travel by nearly 11,000 miles. During this year no flights were taken and we no longer maintain a permanent office space, further reducing our emissions.

Staff Travel: Our main area of impact continues to be staff travel, with staff-owned vehicle emissions amounting to 98.6% of our total carbon footprint, and a further 1.2% coming from the use of public transport.

However, comparing 2023/24 figures to the previous year, overall staff travel related emissions have dropped from 38.39 to 32.23 tCO2e, a reduction of 16%. This is due to staff travel reducing by nearly 11,000 miles, which has contributed to a reduction in average mileage per session of 5%.
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Strategic Actions and Future Plans

The following actions have also been implemented over the past 12 months

• We chose to give up our small office space in Chesham and began to use ad-hoc spaces for necessary in-person meetings. Office related emissions from last year only contributed 1.2% of our carbon footprint, so this has been a relatively small but still significant change.
• We changed the way we reimburse our staff for using public transport, making it more cost effective for them to do so.
• We have introduced a new ‘sustainability clause’ in our service agreements which encourages our clients and settings to be more environmentally responsible, and to offer support and guidance if they would like to make positive change.
• We have increased the visibility of our online session offer by highlighting this option in new contracts. Our service users and Chiltern Insights Group continue to prefer face-to-face sessions however, and we are committed to providing this service if that is the case.
• All new staff now watch a short video outlining our Environment & Sustainability policies and ethos as part of their induction.
• Although not directly related to Chiltern Music Therapy’s carbon footprint, we have begun to share our reports, policies and learnings with other music therapy organisations, in order to help them begin to minimise their environmental impact.

Conclusion

Our environmental sustainability journey is ongoing, and while we have made significant strides, we are continuously seeking new ways to minimise our impact on the planet. At Chiltern Music Therapy, we believe that our commitment to sustainability enhances our mission to provide transformative music therapy services, ensuring a healthier planet for future generations.

For more information about sustainability at Chiltern, please contact Chiltern Music Therapy's Sustainability Lead, Jim Davey-Hewins, at jim@chilternmusictherapy.co.uk.

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