Creating A More Energy Efficient Hotel 242

When you’re opening a business but new to the area, it’s not easy to find the support you need. Fortunately, Blackpool Net Zero Business Academy came to the rescue.

Sharon and Martyn Page are relative newcomers to Blackpool. Until two years ago, they lived in the East Midlands, Sharon working in childcare and Martyn in textiles. As with so many people, the pandemic changed their perspectives. 

“We were looking to do something together, and for ourselves,” says Sharon. “During lockdown, Martyn came up with his plan of running a seaside hotel. I suppose the most natural place for us to go would have been Skegness,  but the season is so much longer in Blackpool, so we came here.”

Making a fresh, environmentally friendly, start

Hotel 242 sits peacefully on the Bispham cliffs, north of the bustling centre. When Sharon and Martyn took it on it was the definition of a ‘fixer upper’.

“The windows were in a terrible state,” says Sharon. “Then the boiler broke the second we got here. A lot needed doing and we wanted to make sense of it from the start, because obviously it's no good just patching things up as you'll only have to do it all again.”

That made it the perfect time to contact Blackpool Net Zero Business Academy, the specialist support service driven by the Business Growth Team at Blackpool Council with funded support from the UK Government.

A five-year, step-by-step plan

“I booked the audit and Megan Tucker, leader of Blackpool’s net-zero team visited us,” says Sharon. “The carbon audit and report reassured us that we were making the right decisions, and Megan broke our actions down into a five-year plan with costings, so we know the order in which things need to happen.”

First step on the plan was replacing an old and highly energy inefficient freezer. “The freezer was terrible – we just couldn’t operate with that – so Megan showed us what to look for when replacing it. In the hallway, we had sensor lights in place but they were more on than off, even in the daytime. Megan helped us identify replacements.

“Next we’ll be looking at installing sensors in guest bathrooms so lights can’t be left on. We’re looking at installing an energy efficient water heater for our living quarters, because the boiler gives priority to the hotel and it means I can be running water for three minutes in our flat before it gets warm, which is a lot to waste. Then we need to look at the way we heat the hotel and see if we can make that more efficient.

“Obviously we can only make changes when the business can support them financially. So each time we have a little money to make improvements we get back in touch with Megan, just to double check our plans, and she'll message back saying ‘that's fine, go ahead’ or offer an alternative.”

Taking the initiative

“One of the biggest challenges when you move to a new area is that you don’t know what help to ask for (or who to ask) because you don’t know what’s available,” says Sharon. “What was brilliant about the Blackpool Net Zero Business Academy is that when we got in touch, Megan took the initiative. We didn’t have to ask; she just ran with it. 

“Her plan is really clear – and it’s broken down into sensible chunks, with top priorities, other things we could do, the cost of changes and the savings we would make. She knows local suppliers and can put you in touch with them too, so that really helps.

“Everyone at the academy has been so helpful and they’re really nice people. They’ve been  fantastic.” 

For fully funded support in making your business more energy efficient and carbon-friendly, talk to Blackpool Net Zero Business Academy