Nottingham City Council has been shortlisted for two prestigious national awards by the Association for Public Service Excellence for work which supports the city’s ambition to be carbon-neutral by 2028.

The authority is shortlisted in the ‘Frontline Services Team of the Year: Parks, Grounds & Horticultural’. Highlights from the Greenspace and Natural Environment team’s submission include:

🦋Growing the Nottingham Green Guardians volunteering programme

🦋Mapping and enhancing greenspaces in the city

🦋Trialling a herbicide-free streets partnership project

The City Council’s innovative vehicle-to-grid pilot is also shortlisted in the ‘Best Climate Action or Decarbonisation initiative’ category. Through the project, solar panels, 40 bi-directional vehicle chargers and electric vehicles, and two large batteries have been installed at Eastcroft Depot. The project aims to maximise the use of renewable energy generated on site, which will reduce bills and carbon emissions.

The APSE Service Award winners will be announced in September. If you’d like to know more about the city’s sustainability journey, take a look at the recently launched Carbon Neutral Nottingham website. 

Summer at our heritage sites  

Visit Nottingham Castle and try the new Hoodwinked Indoor Trail for just £2 this summer. Or pack your picnics, blankets and camping chairs for fantastic open-air productions at our heritage sites to watch MacHamLear, Robin Hood, Barbie and more.  

Join the Outdoor Lord Byron’s Pirate Trail around the Newstead Abbey Grounds or learn about Elizabeth the seamstress in the Black Tudors series in the creative family workshop at Wollaton Hall.  

Make your own clay creation inspired by the ceramics in the  ‘Crafted in Clay’ exhibition at Newstead Abbey this is great for all the family.  

 
Baking and Games Day  

Enjoy Games Day at Green’s Windmill where there will be a giant Connect Four, snakes and ladders, ping-pong and more. If your child enjoys baking they could make some sweet and savoury treats like scones, bread and cupcakes. Book here 

 
Places that kids eat for FREE (or just £1)  

There are various restaurants, supermarkets and cafes that have offers this summer to keep the cost down over the holidays. Click here for more   

We’ve been running a survey for the past month to gather your thoughts on public transport in the city. We want to know what we’re doing right, and what we need to work on, and this feedback will be used to help further improve bus, trams and tickets in the city. The survey closes at midnight this Sunday, 13 August, so don’t miss the chance to share your thoughts.

The survey will take about ten minutes to complete and can be found here. 

Best of luck to the Lionesses tomorrow morning as they take on Colombia for a place in the semi-finals of the Women’s World Cup. Kick-off is 11.30am our time.