University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) was formed on 1 April 2020 following the merger of University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and Weston Area Health NHS Trust.

The information on this page is historic. Visit the UHBW About us pages for the latest information. 

We aspire to be a leader in the field of sustainable healthcare using our influence to enable our staff, patients, suppliers and healthcare partners achieve a sustainable and resilient health and care system for our region.

In January 2019, NHS England launched the NHS Long Term Plan which laid out the future direction of the NHS over the next ten years. The plan commits the NHS to ambitious targets for carbon emission reduction, vehicle exhaust emission reduction and tackling the use of single use plastics within the NHS supply chain.

To lead the way in healthcare in the city, we have set the ambitious goal to become carbon neutral by 2030. This is in partnership with North Bristol NHS Trust. Find out more here.

As one of the largest organisations in Bristol we have a significant role to play to help protect the environment. We have developed a Sustainable Development Strategy which sets out how we intend to manage and reduce our environmental impact, improve efficiency and resilience and control the cost of delivering our services.

We are committed to embedding sustainability across our own organisation, leading by example in our sector and improving the health and wellbeing of the communities we serve.

We collaborate with our healthcare partners and key stakeholders to ensure that our work is aligned to deliver a shared set of goals.

We are committed to working in partnership to deliver Bristol's One City Plan and the vision for a "fair, healthy and sustainable city". 

The Lancet commission declared climate change is the greatest threat to global health. We recognise the urgency of the threat that climate breakdown poses to public health. We wish to be leaders in fast tracking plans to achieve carbon neutrality - improving the health of our population in the process.

Everyone has a part to play in delivering this plan and by working together, we will achieve more and deliver sustainable healthcare.

Lots of work is already under way at the Trust and you can find out more here.

For further information about sustainable healthcare at UH Bristol please contact sustainability@uhbw.nhs.uk.

University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) was formed on 1 April 2020 following the merger of University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and Weston Area Health NHS Trust.

The information on this page is historic. Visit the UHBW About us pages for the latest information. 

Some of the work UH Bristol has already been doing to be more sustainable includes:

• Reducing use of desflurane, an anaesthetic gas which has a much greater environmental impact than alternative anaesthetics;
• Reducing car journeys via lift-share, walking and cycle-to-work schemes for staff;
• Improvements to lighting and heating to reduce carbon emissions;
• Electric bikes are used by the Early Supported Discharged Team at South Bristol Community Hospital to visit stroke patients across the city and into North Somerset at home to provide therapy for suitable patients at home.
• A number of measures to reduce, reuse and recycle plastics including:

Reducing…

- Gloves - trialling an education programme to reduce the overuse of gloves in a clinical setting.

- In Catering we have:

- Discount is offered at all Brewnel's when using your own/bought reusable cup.
- Audit of all Trust water stations to make sure they are mains fed and not bottle fed; signs encouraging people to refill their bottles, not buy bottled water; and sites to be added to the Refill Bristol website.

Reusing...

- Working with partners to reuse as much office furniture as possible whether we give them unwanted furniture, saving on the environmental and financial costs of disposal - or they give us furniture, saving us procuring new items.

Recycling...

- Introducing recycling bins into public areas.
- Trust owned cafes - Brewnel's:

- Working with partners to recycle various plastic clinical waste items.

• The Trust has two electric vans which are used for deliveries to hospitals around the main Bristol Royal Infirmary city centre campus. The vans, which have been in place for five years, are also used to make deliveries from the hospitals to GP practices.
• Staff are able to make use of an allotment on the Trust's city centre campus. Lots of vegetables and fruit have been growing including potatoes, carrots, beans, tomatoes and courgettes. Each month the Trust holds a lunchtime allotment meeting where staff can find out more about the vegetables growing. Incredible Edible Bristol has also installed new planters outside two of the Trust's buildings on the city centre campus. People are encouraged to harvest the produce for free or do a bit of weeding and watering.
• Spending time in nature can have a positive impact on physical and mental health and the Trust promotes greenspaces across its city centre campus to support the wellbeing of our patients, visitors and staff. A greenspaces map is also available for people to use. The greenspaces include numerous gardens and courtyards adjacent to each of the city centre hospitals.
• We encourage staff to get involved in activities and events throughout the year as part of the Green Impact Engagement scheme. The scheme provides innovative ways for staff to get involved in sustainability in the workplace and celebrating those that did with a joint awards ceremony.

For further information about sustainable healthcare at UH Bristol please contact sustainability@uhbw.nhs.uk.