York Minster goes for Eco Gold – and succeeds!

On World Environment Day (Thursday 5 June), York Minster has announced that it has received a Gold Eco Church Award.

The achievement follows many years of strategic and sustained action to address the climate crisis and a commitment to better care for God’s creation, now and into the future. 

The prestigious award is the highest accolade in the Eco Church programme which is operated by A Rocha UK, a Christian charity working to protect and restore the natural world. Their national environmental and ecological programme inspires and equips churches, cathedrals, and dioceses to care for creation through their worship, buildings, land, community engagement, and lifestyles. 

York Minster can trace its history back nearly 1400 years to its founding for the baptism of King Edwin of Northumbria in 627AD. This long history has not stopped the cathedral’s staff, volunteers, and members of its worshipping community in being forward thinking in their pledge to fight climate change. The cathedral’s Vision and Strategy for 2030 makes a commitment to establish York Minster as a pioneering, low carbon heritage estate with environmental sustainability integrated throughout behaviours, business practices, and building innovation.

Following a Bronze Award in 2016 and Silver in 2017, the cathedral has taken significant action to become more sustainable through:  

• The installation of 184 solar panels on the roof of the cathedral, as well as three other solar installations across the precinct;  

• The creation of Minster Gardens and the redevelopment of College Green as two areas of green space in the city centre;  

• The retrofit of York Minster Refectory using sustainable technologies;  

• The establishment of a Centre of Excellence for Heritage Craft Skills and Estate Management combining the preservation of craft skills, pursuit of a low carbon estate, and the expansion of green spaces. 

Other initiatives have included Creationtide celebrations, nature trails for children and families, participation in York Environment Weeks, the resowing of wildflower meadows, a reduction of plastic packaging for products sold in the Minster Shops, and the installation of air source heat pumps and rainwater capture across the precinct.  

York Minster’s ambition to develop a low carbon heritage estate is encapsulated in the York Minster Precinct Neighbourhood Plan which set a community action to achieve Gold Eco Church status by 2025. The Plan was adopted in 2022 and was developed by the York Minster Precinct Neighbourhood Forum, made up of residents, those who work in the precinct area, and its Ward Councillors, and was subject to extensive public consultation.  

The Reverend Maggie McLean, York Minster’s Canon Missioner and Chair of the Environmental Sustainability Group, said: “Humanity is the creation of a Creator God. We are called by God to care for this planet we call home. We all recognise that we have not cared for the earth with the self-sacrificing and nurturing love that it requires of us. We all need to repent for our part in causing the current environmental crisis that has led to climate change. 

“The Fifth Mark of Mission is ‘to strive to safeguard the integrity of creation, and sustain and renew the life of the earth’. From the Gardens Team who carefully tend to the 7 hectares of land in our care, to the Stonemasons who work tirelessly to repair the damage caused by a changing climate, we have recognised our unique responsibility as the Mother Church of the Northern Province to lead by example in the hope that we can inspire other cathedrals and historic buildings to follow in our footsteps. 

“York Minster’s work towards this award is our part in trying to redress this balance and a commitment, by small acts of continual change, to tread more lightly upon this earth, for the good of all humanity and for the flourishing of all creation.” 

Alex McCallion, Director of Works and Precinct at York Minster, added: “We are delighted to be able to announce our achievement on World Environment Day, a day when we can come together to call for collective action and systemic change.  

“Our adopted Neighbourhood Plan has helped us make significant changes in a restrictive heritage environment, working collaboratively with City of York Council and Historic England. Climate change poses a substantial long-term threat to the fabric of York Minster and the Precinct and so our sensitive interventions, balanced against the significance of the Minster and its estate, becomes increasingly important as we get close to 2030 – the ambitious net zero target set by both City of York Council and the Church of England.  

“Our work to care for God’s creation does not stop here. Sustainability will remain at the heart of all we do here at York Minster as we drive towards net zero and ensure that future generations can enjoy this magnificent building as we do today”. 

York Minster will host a Heritage Festival on the first weekend of August. As part of the Festival, York Minster will be lit up in green to celebrate the award and a special service of Choral Evensong will focus on sustainability. More details will be released in the coming weeks.