Carbon Neutral by 2030

We are committed to become carbon neutral in our estate and operations by 2030

How we will become carbon neutral by 2030

We will make our council buildings and day-to-day operations carbon neutral by 2030.

This means we are cutting emissions from our buildings, street lighting, fleet and business travel. Where emissions are difficult to abate by 2030, we will balance them through carbon offsets.

This work supports the national net-zero target for 2050. We also want to show residents and local businesses what can be achieved in Oxfordshire.

We declared a climate emergency in 2019. Since then, we have set out our approach and targets in our climate plans:

Our progress so far

From 2010 to 2011, our operational emissions have fallen by 73%.

Our emissions were highest from 2013 to 2014, at 28,328 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e).

From 2024 to 2025, they had fallen to 7,431 tonnes CO2e.

In 2024 to 2025, emissions from the council estate and our day-to-day activities fell by 3% compared with 2023 to 2024. That is a reduction of 201 tonnes CO2e.

Fig 1. Decarbonising our estate and operations

Where our emissions come from

From 2024 to 2025, our main sources of emissions were:

buildings: 36%
street lighting: 30%
fleet travel: 20%
staff mileage: 15%

Buildings

About 36% of our operational emissions come from our 120 corporate buildings. We are developing a decarbonisation programme that supports our property strategy. Our aim is to keep all council buildings on track to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030.

We want to retrofit the majority of council buildings by 2030. We have completed energy efficiency audits across the whole estate and costed the work needed.

We have previously secured funding through the Central Government’s Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme to carry out retrofit work across our buildings. To date, 24 corporate properties have been decarbonised.

Street lighting

About 30% of our emissions come from street lighting. We have invested £40m in replacing almost all street lights with energy-efficient LEDs. Most of our emissions reductions so far have come from this work.

In 2025 to 2026, 19 traffic signal sites were converted to LED and 553 illuminated bollards and signs were either de-illuminated or converted to LED. Our aim is to continue converting the remaining halogen traffic signals and crossings sites to LED.

We are also working with communities to dim some lights, or switch them off for short periods where this is appropriate. This saves energy, cuts costs and reduces light pollution.

Fleet and staff travel

A third of our emissions come from staff work travel. We are reducing these emissions by:

reviewing how we use the fleet
encouraging teams to share vehicles and resources
replacing petrol and diesel vehicles with zero tailpipe emission alternatives where this is practical

We have 460 fleet vehicles. We have introduced a new Vehicle Management system and a dedicated Vehicle Management Service to centralise fleet information. This will help us reduce unnecessary vehicles and plan replacements.

We also have an electric-by-default policy. This means we will phase out petrol and diesel vehicles where operationally possible.

So far, we have bought and deployed 81 electric vehicles. They now make up more than 18% of our fleet. We plan to buy another 51 vehicles in 2026 to 2027. We have 77 charge points across 31 sites.

Our fire and rescue service is also working with ULEMCo, with support from Innovate UK, to develop the UK’s first hydrogen-fuelled fire engine.

Maintained schools

Emissions from maintained schools have fallen by 50% since 2010 to 2011, after adjusting for schools that became academies.

An interest-free loan scheme was introduced in 2023 to help maintained schools reduce carbon emissions. The loan is available to help schools upgrade to LED lighting and install solar PV. The effect of this work will appear in future greenhouse gas reports.

Schools and other education settings across Oxfordshire are supported to take climate action in ways that young people can engage with and lead. We provide an Action on Carbon and Energy in Schools programme, which aims to helps schools reduce carbon emissions, lower energy costs, and create healthier, more resilient learning environments.

We provide funding, guidance and practical support to a range of school and youth focused initiatives, helping to embed climate awareness and action into everyday learning and activities.

Examples of this work include partnerships with groups such as Sustainable Chipping Norton and Greener Henley. These organisations work directly with schools and young people to design and deliver hands-on projects, events and campaigns that build skills, confidence and a strong understanding of climate action at a local level.

Through these partnerships, we aim to empower young people to take meaningful action in their schools and communities, and to ensure their voices are reflected in Oxfordshire’s wider climate response.

Supply chain emissions

We are expanding the way we report emissions from our supply chain. In August 2025, we approved an updated Ethical Procurement Policy. This helps us work with suppliers to measure emissions, report them clearly, and create carbon-reduction plans.

From 2022 to 2023, we carried out an early estimate of supply chain emissions using spending data from 2020 to 2021. This suggested emissions of about 150,000 tonnes CO2e.

We are now asking more suppliers to report their actual emissions directly. This will give us a more accurate picture.

From 2024 to 2025, five of our top 10 highest-emitting suppliers reported direct emissions data. Together, they accounted for 23,606 tonnes CO2e.

Staff training and decision-making

We have rolled out the award-winning carbon literacy training to our staff. To date 665 members of staff have undertaken the carbon literacy course and we have reached 'Bronze' Carbon Literacy status as an organisation, and 'Silver' Carbon Literacy status in our Highways, Environment, Economy and Place directorate.

Climate impact assessments are now conducted to ensure our decision-making aligns with our climate commitments.

Accountability

We are constantly trying to improve the way we monitor and measure our carbon emissions. We publish our greenhouse gas emissions every year. Over time, we will expand our reporting to include more supply chain emissions.

Greenhouse Gas Report 2024 to 2025 (pdf format)

In line with the council's scrutiny processes, councillors recently reviewed the council's approach to emissions reduction. The learn more about the Climate Action Programme Six Month Update.