A prestigious Richmond hotel which offers ‘green’ weddings has upped its environmental credentials further after receiving a prestigious council award.

Following support from a ‘Greening Business Advisor’, The Bingham in Richmond was found to have ‘good energy principles’ and in recognition of this the venue was presented with the Council’s ‘Advanced’ Go Green Award. 

Having benefitted from the Council’s free Greening Business support, the Bingham are replacing all their internal and external lighting (534 bulbs) with LED lamps, which last around 50 times longer. The new dimmable and candelabra lighting will save the hotel around £15,000 per year, and pay back within 6 months.

Other highlights of the Bingham green approach include:

 - Store rooms and toilets have occupancy sensors in place. This stops lights being left on when they are empty
 - Hotel uses biodegradable toilet paper and eco-friendly cleaning products
 - Guests are given the option of reducing the frequency of the number of times their towels and linen are washed
 - Non-packaged biscuits baked in-house are offered in rooms
 - The pens are made from recycled materials and are compostable
 - A paperless accounting system means paper invoices are reduced by 75 per cent
 - Food waste is sent for composting and the amount produced is reduced by adjusting stock levels, offering doggy bags, and reviewing portion sizes
 - The hotel avoids overheating rooms. Vacant rooms are not heated.
 - A cycle to work scheme is in place.
 - Guests can explore Richmond on fold-away Pashley bicycles specially made for the hotel.

And they are not stopping there.

Staff at the Bingham are inspired to continue making savings and have set ambitious targets to further reduce environmental impacts. Their next projects will be to increase loft insulation, further reduce waste, and harvest rainwater for the garden.

Richmond Council Cabinet Member for Environment, Cllr Fleming, said:
“The Bingham Hotel is a wonderful business and its green credentials speak for themselves. It was only right to present the staff with a Go Green award. Richmond businesses are acutely aware of the environment. These awards will make sure more follow suit and become eco-minded like the Bingham Hotel. Richmond is the greenest place to live in London, and these awards will further build on the borough’s environmentally friendly reputation.”

Erick Kervaon, Manager of the Bingham Hotel said:”The Greening Business Programme has really helped us. The Greening Business Advisor was extremely helpful, knowledgeable and resourceful.”

The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) 2007-2013 grant funding for the Council’s free Greening Business programme is coming to a close. Small to medium-sized businesses who also want to save money or go green need to register by 30th September for support online or email or call 020 8944 5501.