At Highly Sprung we continue to produce work with an environmental focus. This Summer we are remounting our early years performance Grow, for ages 3 – 7 to learn to love their environment, as an outdoor version that can tour to parks, playgrounds and local gardens!
We are also thrilled to be continuing our partnership with Warwickshire Libraries with The Big Gren Schools Tour 2025/26 for Primary Schools. We will continue to reach audiences with our stories of water pollution through CastAway and cleaner energy sources in Accelerate through our outdoor touring, visiting locations across the UK this year.
Over the past few months since our last sustainability update blog, we’ve been busy completing our data audit of our emissions footprint for the last financial year. We have used this to inform our action plan for 2025/26, which we’re putting it in practice this year.
As Green Champion, I attended the Theatre Green Book event hosted by the RSC on the 24th January 2025, to share case studies and discussion about implementing the TGB. Internally, the Sustainability Working Group (which currently consists of a Trustee from our Board and myself) has been reviewing the data and drafting the action plan. I’ve also watched an insightful webinar from Outdoor Arts UK about Green Riders.
Our data audit for 2024/25 flagged up some real positives, that a number of our existing artists already are using train travel (lower carbon travel) to come to work with us. Also large proportions of our sets and/or costumes are already stored and then are reused as part of our performances. The audit also highlighted some clear digital carbon footprint actions where we can have impact, and the need for more streamlined data gathering for Scope 3 (activities not directly controlled by us, but that indirectly affects our emissions) travel of our artists, participants and audiences.
Some of the headline actions for this financial year (2025/26) are:
- Gathering further data – streamlining artist travel data and a pilot for participants, Sprung Youth and audience travel data [Scope 3]
- Signing up to the West Midlands Net Zero business pledge
- Increasing current recycling in the office/building and gathering further data on waste weight and end destination (recycled/landfill)
- Starting work on reducing our digital carbon footprint – implementing small habits and starting to look to improve our website’s carbon score
- Writing a procurement policy
- Creating & sending out a Green Rider for the 2025 touring season for Accelerate and CastAway (based on Lorna Rees’ excellent work)
Interested in finding out more about any of our environmental themed touring performances? Take a look at our website or get in touch.
“We should treat our world nicely.” – Grow audience member, aged between 5- 7