Sustainability at Bethnal&Bec
We are 100% committed to reducing our Carbon Footprint and working as quickly as possible to become a NetZero business. Sustainability is at the core of everything that we do at Bethnal&Bec and we're proud to be inspiring our guests to make sustainable changes in their home lives after staying with us.
Our Luxury Retreats
At Bethnal&Bec Luxury stays we don't believe that luxury should have to come at the cost of sustainability. We have built all 3 of our luxury self catering retreats with sustainability at their core. We have reclaimed, repurposed, recycled & rescued as much as possible to form our beautiful retreats. We think that we've created something rather special and we'd love to tell you more about our commitment to sustainability.
Managing Waste
Sustainable Retreats
Local Ecosystems
Managing waste is a key part of our sustainability effort and very little of our waste goes to landfill. Read more about our hot composting, recycling and repurposing here . . .
Each of our three retreats have been built with sustainability at their core. Our newest retreat The Foaling Box is 90% furnished with recycled pieces, or with furniture destined for landfill.
Supporting or local environment and ecosystems is important to us and we're always working on ways to increase this further. Click to read more about our wild flower meadow and bumblebee villa.
Sustainability Awards
We were finalists in the National Recycling Awards 2021 Recycling Excellence category. We didn't win but to be a finalist was such an achievement for our work.
We were absolutely thrilled to WIN the SME Hertfordshire Business Awards 2021 for Sustainability!
Sustainable Collaborations
As we work towards becoming a Net Zero business we seek to work with other like minded businesses who can help us to not only reach our sustainability goals but also meet our core values. As well as being committed to sustainability we're also committed to supporting local businesses and you'll find a host of food, drinks and services supplied by our Hertfordshire business neighbours.
Sustainable Collaborations
We have collaborated with Rewards.Earth and as a business, we have committed to planting 10 trees per month. Read more about tree planting and our other sustainability collaborations.
Pimp My Stay
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Our unique Pimp My Stay service allows our guests to pre order a large range of food & drink to be waiting for them in their accommodation on arrival. All sourced from amazing local businesses.
We offer a selection of unique experiences that can be booked to enjoy as part of your stay. All of the experiences are delivered by excellent local small businesses.
Curated Experiences
Our Top Tips for Sustainable Living
We love hearing from our previous guests about how they've made small sustainable changes in their home lives since staying with us. Here are some of our top tips on small sustainable changes you can make in your every day life . . .
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Reuse & Repurpose
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Rather than throwing things away think about how you could reuse or repurpose. Could that glass jar destined for the recycling be used as a vase, a container for something else? Could that stained t-shirt destined for the bin be cut up and used as cleaning rags? If we change our mindset and don't use recycling or the bin as default then we can come up with some truly unique uses for 'waste' items.
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Reduce Food Waste & Save Money
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Mrs Bec aka Vicky is a proud yellow sticker lover and shouts far and wide about the benefits of buying reduced price food that could be destined for the bin. Not only does purchasing reduced price and close to sell by date food reduce waste going to landfill it also saves a huge amount of money. If you hit the supermarket at the right time and are inventive in the kitchen then you can drastically reduce your household food budgets. Use the links below to read some more more top tips on saving money and reducing food waste.
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'I feed our family of 6 for around £35 a week'
'I bought four whole ducks for £10 (usually £100)'
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Buy Pre-Loved
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There are some things that we're always going to want to buy new but for many every day items it's really not necessary. There are so many great ways to buy great quality pre loved items at a fraction of the cost of buying new, saving both money and the planet. Some of our favourite things to buy pre loved are; clothes, homeware, furniture, everything for growing children! Charity shops, Facebook marketplace and car boot sales are some of our favourite places to hunt out pre loved gems.
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Reusing
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Reusing single use items and excess items or packaging that you don't need. Think ahead and take a reusable bottle or cup of you know you're likely to get a drink out and about. Always carry a reusable bag with you. These may seem like small changes but if we all made a commitment to small changes like this and refused more single use items then we would create a big change.
Our Future Sustainability Goals
We have huge goals for the future of Bethnal&Bec in terms of sustainability. We are committed to becoming a Net Zero business by 2025 and endeavour to do so with our three existing luxury retreats, as well as our newest accommodation.
New Accommodation!
We are currently building our fourth accommodation at a different site in Felixstowe, Suffolk. Our latest retreat will be powered entirely by renewables, including solar power and an air source heat pump. The accommodation will also be furnished to the same principles of The Foaling Box, with a goal to use 95% recycled, repurposed and second-hand items. Finally, the property will also feature greywater recycling in the toilets and garden.
Fighting for Change
Over the last two years, I’ve also been lobbying the East Hertfordshire council to look at changing outdated planning laws for listed buildings, specifically with regards to adding solar panels and using land for ground source heat pumps. We, along with 1.5 million other homes in the UK, use oil for our heating and are desperate to change this due to the negative impact on the environment. So far, we have had two planning applications rejected for solar panels, and the red tape around Historic England planning on listed properties and building regulations requires urgent change. I have been published in The Telegraph and have spoken on BBC News and Times Radio about this. In the future, we really hope to change these regulations and help reduce the amount of harmful carbon emissions exhumed from homes and businesses in our local area.
We hope to continue educating our guests and the local community about sustainable practices, inspiring them to live in a more environmentally friendly manner. We will begin working with the local college this term to introduce better recycling and food waste practices there, too.
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