LBC CLIMATE CHANGE

ADAPTATION ACTION PLAN

March 2010

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan

Contents

Introduction 3

Expected changes in climate 4

Climate impacts in Luton 7

National Indicator 188 Planning to Adapt to Climate Change 9

Climate change risks and adaptive actions 11

Adapting Built Environment 11

Minimising Flood Risk 13

Enhancing Green Infrastructure 15

Resilience of Service Delivery 16

Workforce Capability 17

Communicating Climate Change Risks 18

Providing Leadership 19

Next steps 20

Appendices 21

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan 2

Introduction
Climate change is a challenge that
will have far-reaching effects on our
economy, society and the
environment. The Stern Review,
published in 2006, offered the
starkest warning yet: failure to act
would result in devastating social
impacts and trigger catastrophic
global recession.
The past several years have seen a
steady and growing rise in the public
profile of the issue in the UK and
elsewhere. Much attention is placed
on action at the national and
international level, which is essential.
But we all have a vital role to play, as
many of the activities causing carbon
emissions are influenced by local
authority services and actions.
Accommodating the impacts of
climate change is vital and this will
require adaptation strategies.
A commitment to adapting to climate
change is featured within Luton’s
Sustainable Community Strategy, a
document produced by Luton’s Local
Strategic Partnership, Luton Forum.
One of the key priorities within this
strategy is ‘successfully adapting and
mitigating for climate change’.
LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan
The purpose of this adaptation action
plan is to address the risks (and
opportunities) a changing climate
may pose to services within Luton
Borough Council and to serve as a
summary and is a follow up
document incorporating points raised
by Heads of Service as part of their
individual service climate change risk
assessments.
This initial adaptation plan will
include actions that will require
further investigation and planning
within the relevant services and
some actions may be implemented
as long term potential adaptation
options.
The action plan will be reviewed and
updated annually, to reflect the
dynamic nature of climate change
risks and opportunities.
3
Expected changes in climate
The UK Climate Projections 09
(UKCP09) were published in June
2009, to illustrate what the changes
in our future climate may be. The
government funded projections,
produced by a consortium of
organisations including The Met
Office Hadley Centre, UK Climate
Impacts Programme and the
Environment Agency are based on
recent science and climate models.
UKCP09 include three different
greenhouse gas emissions
‘scenarios’ and show what the
expected major changes would be
without action to cut global carbon
emissions (high), with limited
reduction in emissions (medium) and
with major cuts to global emissions
(low emissions scenario). The
projections also show the changes in
different 30 years ‘time slices’ and for
different levels of probability.
The key findings from UKCP09 are:
 Summer temperature: all
areas of the UK will get
warmer, more so in summer
than in winter
 Summer precipitation will
tend to decrease across the
UK
 Winter precipitation will
tend to increase across the
UK
LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan
The UK has suffered in the past from
the negative and destructive effects
of severe weather. Although this
cannot be directly attributed to
climate change, the effects of a
changing climate could be similar in
the future.
 The August 2003 heatwave
caused 2,000 excess deaths
in the UK (UKCP09)
 The flooding of 2007 resulted
in 55,000 properties becoming
flooded and 350,000 people
without mains water
(UKCP09)
 The Environment Agency
estimated the costs of £3.2bn
directly attributable to the
floods in South and East
Yorkshire, Worcestershire,
Gloucestershire and
Oxfordshire in 2007.
4
Summer temperatures

Map is a central estimate for annual temperature change in the medium emissions scenario for
2080s. Figures represent regional averages from data tables in Projections report. Hottest day is for
medium emissions scenario 90% probability level, 2080s
.
Summer precipitation

The map shows a 50% probability level for 2080s in the medium emissions scenario. Data represent
regional averages.

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan 5

Winter precipitation

The map is at 50% probability level for 2080s and the medium emissions scenario. It is based at
regional averages. The wettest day is at the 90% probability level, for medium emissions scenario in
the 2080s. *

*
The findings of UKCP 09 projections can be accessed at
http://ukclimateprojections.defra.gov.uk/

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan 6

Climate impacts on Luton
A study commissioned by EERA and
the Sustainable Development Round
Table- ‘Living with Climate Change in
the East of England’ (2002)
described the ‘East of England
Southern Heartland’ (including
Luton) as having issues with water
resources and a greater risk of
subsidence, which is likely to place
specific requirements on service
providers, including local authorities
and others involved in maintaining
the road and rail networks, as well as
service implications for property
managers.
As Luton and the surrounding areas
are some of the areas most under
pressure from development in the
East of England, both now and in the
future, the area is likely to suffer
more from water supply issues.
Luton Borough Council went through
the process of creating an LCLIP
(Local Climate Impact Profile) for
Luton, which involved reviewing local
newspapers and web sites for
weather and climate related incidents
and their effects, and interviewing
Council Service Heads and
Managers about their experiences of
dealing with extreme weather and
the effect such events have had on
their service delivery levels.
LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan
The main events that have caused
problems (during the time of study
2003-2008) in Luton were:
 Flooding (most common event
being reported in local media
and the cause of cancellation
of 2007 carnival)
 Heavy snow and issues with
grit availability, impact on
transport and pedestrian
health and safety
During the 5 years considered by the
study there were 19 instances of
flooding (following heavy rainfall)
reported, consequences of which
included interruptions and
cancellations of sport events, serious
interruptions in the annual cereal
harvest, collapse of ceiling and
subsequent closure of a junior
school, evacuation of the police
station, damage to cars and housing,
damage to roads and buildings and
delays in scheduled road repairs and
construction.
Eight reported occurrences of snow
and freezing temperatures also
caused a number of events
disruptions, delays in train service,
cancellation of flights, schools
closures, road gridlocks and
increased numbers in requests for
AA and ambulance assistance.
7
 Other weather related reports from
2003-2008 included a mini tornado
(T1-T2) that damaged 6 houses,
some cars, trees and fences in the
Limbury area in September 2007,
fallen trees, damaged roofs and
delays in refuse collections due to
gale force winds in Jan 2007,
increase in cases of food poisoning
in the hot Summer of 2006, and loss
of cattle and computer problems
caused by storm and lightning.

Weather Event – Luton’s worst rainfall since 1891

Causal Weather Variables: 99mm of rain in 48 hours (21:00 26/05/07 to 21:00 28/05/07).
Two months of rain fell in just two days. Rain was coupled with a cold snap, with temperatures
falling to 7.2ºc on Bank Holiday Monday.
Climate Impacts: Travel disruption, flooding on main routes in Luton transport network and in
Wardown Park, the main locations used for the carnival parade.
Strong winds affected ability to erect stages etc - health and safety concerns. 100,000 people
unable to attend and 2000 participants were unable to take part
Incidents: Cancellation of Carnival, Wardown Park and New Bedford Road flooded, increase
in number of calls to emergency services.
Economic/ strategic consequences :-
Costs of over £300,000 for cancellation of the Carnival (not inclusive of man hours to organise
event) plus uninsurable losses.
Smaller scale event re-scheduled to September to showcase costumes etc. with associated
financial costs. Loss of a year’s worth of work including organising road closures, ensuring
public health and safety and organising venues. Knock-on effect on reputation of the Council.
Services affected: All services involved in organisation of event

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan 8

National Indicator 188 Planning to Adapt to Climate Change
The UK Climate Impacts Programme
describe ‘adaptation’ as ‘taking
action to deal with the consequences
of a changing climate, resulting from
increased levels of greenhouse
gases’ (UKCP09 Report, 2009).
In recognition of the role that local
authorities should be taking, in 2008
the Government introduced an
Adapting to Climate Change
indicator (NI188) in the new Local
Government Performance
Framework.
The indicator allows authorities and
partners to measure progress in
adapting to climate change over four
levels. The levels range from
identifying the priority areas for
adaptation through to developing
and maintaining an adaptation action
plan.
Luton Forum has chosen NI 188 as
one of the 35 Local Area Agreement
(LAA) improvement indicators and
agreed to achieve the highest level
of the indicator (level 4) by 2011/12.
To put this into context, the
Government’s overall objective in
this field is to support Local
Authorities towards level 2 by
2011/12. Achieving level 4 as
planned would put Luton in the 5%
best performing councils in England.
LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan
Luton Borough Council is now at the
stage where we can present an
‘Adaptation Action Plan’- a document
bringing together a comprehensive
risk based assessment of climate
change to Luton Borough Council,
with adaptive actions for priority
services to mitigate, or at least
manage the risks.
The Climate Change Act 2008
The Climate Change Act 2008
commits the UK to carry out an
assessment on of the risks to the UK
of climate change every five years.
The first cycle is required to report to
Parliament by end of January 2012.
The Climate Change Risk
Assessment will provide evidence
and analysis which will enable all UK
Administrations to:-
 Understand the level of risks
(threats and opportunities)
posed by climate change
(likelihood and scale of
impact)
 Compare the risks of a
changing climate with other
pressures on the Government
 Prioritise adaptation policy
geographically and by sector
9
  Assess the costs and benefits
of adaptation actions and
support the case for resources
for these
The Climate Change Act also gives
the Secretary of State the power to
direct certain organisations (statutory
undertakers for example) to produce
reports by the end of 2011 on the
impact of climate change on their
functions and how they plan to adapt
to these changes.

Climate change risk assessment process at LBC

LBC signed up to the NI 188 Planning to Adapt to Climate Change pledging to ‘assess the
risk associated with climate change and the implications for our services and our
communities of climate change impacts and adapt accordingly’

High level stocktake of plans, strategies and policies for consideration of climate change
impacts

Local climate impact profile process completed(based on evidence of Luton’s vulnerability

to severe weather events and in particular how these events affected the local community
as well as the authority’s assets and capacity to deliver services), incorporating a media
review and one-to-one interviews with Heads of Service.

Heads of Service complete risk assessments for their vulnerability to climate change,
listing the effects and impacts, control measures that are in place and scoring the risk to
service from 1 (low risk) to 9 (high risk)

Findings of the risk assessment used to identify priority services and adaptive actions for
these services incorporated into an Adaptation Action Plan

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan 10

Climate risks and adaptive actions
Luton Borough Council is made up of
five departments within which
Service Heads were asked to assess
the risk of climate change to their
service delivery, consider the effects,
provide control measures to
minimise the risk and provide a risk
score for their service as a whole.
Adapting Built Environment
The built environment is identified by
Central Government as a priority
sector for adaptation to a changing
climate. Built environment in this
context is understood as the
commissioning, design, construction
and operation of buildings, roads,
utilities and other infrastructure.
Because of its longevity, the built
environment needs plans that deal
not only with new-build but also with
maintenance and retro-fitting of
existing buildings and infrastructure.
It is also one of the sectors where
adaptation options must carefully
consider the impact on carbon
dioxide emissions. The use of
mechanical air-conditioning to
provide cooling in the face of
increased summertime temperatures
is a simple example of a mal-
LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan
These scores are listed in
Appendix 1.
This plan lists the key areas that
were identified through the risk
assessment process, how these
risks can be controlled and specific
areas for future action, allocated to
the relevant services.
adaptation strategy that will increase
greenhouse gas emissions.
Most commonly expected effects of a
changing climate on the built
environment include:
 increased risk of subsidence
(e.g. in Farley Hill and
Stopsley)
 reduced thermal comfort of
occupants (especially from
overheating in summer)
 increased damage to property
and infrastructure
 temporarily impassable roads
 increased disruptions to
transport services
 increased maintenance of
roadside verges
Luton Borough Council’s responses
to address the above issues are
coming from a number of different
11
 Services including Planning, Capital Adaptive actions feature in the recent
and Asset Management, Highway refresh of the Local Transport Plan
Strategy, Maintenance and (LTP3) and as well as in the
Engineering, Road Safety and operational practices of road network
Regeneration. maintenance.

The Council has included Climate

Change Risk in its risk registers of
major construction projects and as a
factor in assessing suitability of its
own property portfolio. Adaptation to
hotter weather and local flooding is
being taken into account in major
new build and regeneration projects
and it is making its way into the Local
Development Framework (see
Butterfield Case Study).
Areas of further work include a
review of budget implications,
considerations on how the risk of
delays in works should be split
between the contractor and client,
setting thresholds and reviewing
specifications of constructions
materials and re-evaluation of road
safety measures addressing varying
seasonal use of the public highway
and extreme weather events.

Adaptation in buildings – Butterfield Business Park, Luton

This award winning LBC building is one of the

first office buildings in the UK to incorporate a
range of new energy efficient systems
including a ventilation system using earth
ducts, solar power, sustainable drainage
systems and thermal mass cooling. It also
optimises natural light whilst minimising
overheating due to direct sunlight through the
orientation of the buildings; solar shading, in
the form of automatic internal blinds; and
strategic planting of deciduous trees to
maximise shading.

Utilising these types of technology will be vital

in the future to ensure that our buildings are fit
for purpose and comfortable for work in all
conditions, without relying on measures such
as air conditioning in periods of hot weather.

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan 12

Minimising Flood Risk
The risk of flooding in Luton is
localised and the most effective way
to reduce the risk of localised
flooding is to look at long-term
adaptation of the environment
through redevelopment and
changing the character of urban
areas situated in the flood plain.
Luton has certain characteristics that
makes the town susceptible to
localised flooding, for example heavy
development and significant
infrastructure on areas of the
floodplain. Future development and
urban expansion may also increase
the risk of flooding through
increasing rapid run off from non-
permeable surfaces.
At this point in time, the types of
flooding that Luton is most likely to
suffer from include overtopping of
river banks and the channel,
overflow of surface water drains and
inundation of sewers. With predicted
changes in rainfall patterns and an
increase in severe weather these
types of flooding may become more
common for Luton.
The Pitt Review, published in 2008
was a response to the UK 2007
floods and detailed 92
recommendations covering flood risk
management (knowing when and
where it may flood; better planning
and reducing the risk of flooding and
its impact); emergency response;
maintaining power and water
supplies and protecting essential
services; better advice and helping
LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan
people to protect their families and
homes; and recovery.
As a response to these
recommendations, the Luton Flood
Management Group was set up to
oversee local flood risk management
issues and respond to the points
highlighted in the Pitt Review. For
Luton, important key actions arising
from the report will be taken forward
by the Luton Flood Management
Group and are included in this
Adaptation Action Plan.
As a follow up to this work, the
Group will ensure the development
of a Surface Water Management
Plan. The Surface Water
Management Plan is a document
that will assist in planning for and
dealing with flooding from
overflowing sewers, drains, small
water courses and ditches that occur
as a result of heavy rainfall, which is
a specific problem in Luton.
The Luton Flood Management Group
also have a detailed action plan and
have completed work in the following
areas:
 Completing a Strategic Flood
Risk Assessment for Luton
and South Bedfordshire
 Including SFRA policies in
Local Development
Framework documents
13
  Gaining access to Thames
Water’s online asset data to
assist in locating sewers to
help in dealing with flooding
incidents
Luton Borough Council is also
heavily involved in working with
the Local Resilience Forum for
Bedfordshire and Luton (BLLRF)
on tasks such as completing a
Vulnerable Persons procedure to
LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan
identify persons who may need
assistance in times of flooding
and a bringing together a Multi
Agency Group Response Plan to
specifically address flooding
issues. BLLRF are planning to
take climate change trends into
consideration when drafting
procedures for future incidents.
14
Enhancing Green Infrastructure
Parks and green spaces of Luton
offer significant opportunities for
mitigating against and adapting to
the changing climate. Green spaces
are essential for retention of water
and modification of temperatures in
an urban environment. Trees in
particular play a significant role in
cooling the air and providing shade
for the benefit of people and wildlife.
Hotter summer temperatures are
likely to see an increase in use of
parks for outdoor activities and
shade. Furthermore, large expanses
of grass provide areas for water
absorption, essential in managing
the flood risk in town.
At the same time the changing
climate poses a serious threat to
biodiversity and endurance of the
green spaces from heat-stress,
drought, strong winds and gales,
pests and diseases. Extreme
weather conditions are a particular
challenge in the management of the
town’s tree stock. The combination of
more frequent gales and wetter
winters is making the premature loss
of the towns mature and veteran tree
stock a cause for considerable
concern. Hotter and drier summers
could cause an increase in claims for
subsidence caused by trees and
increase risk of fire damage. Also,
establishing new trees and shrubs
and maintenance of green spaces
could become more challenging as
irrigation may be limited during water
shortages in the summer.
LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan
Mitigation against and adaptation to
changes in climate are being widely
incorporated in the way local parks
and green spaces are designed and
managed. The Draft Luton and South
Bedfordshire Green Space Strategy
(2008) recommends that in both new
green space provision and
enhancement of existing sites
important decisions need to be taken
to include choice of trees and shrubs
to withstand more extreme weather
conditions and to incorporate
sensitively designed storage ponds.
Consideration should be given to:
• Drought resistant planting
• Permanent and Temporary ponds
to which runoff is directed
• Selection of tree species based
upon research or likely shifts in
climate zones associated with
climate change
At an operational level new risks are
being taken into account and species
composition in seasonal displays are
been adapted to sustain draughts,
for example bedding displays in St
Georges Square are using geranium
again because they need less water
than other seasonal bedding plants.
Further planned areas of work
include increasing the tree cover in
Luton, developing and amending
appropriate tree management plans
and increasing awareness of the role
of parks and green spaces in a
changing climate among staff,
voluntary groups and visitors
15
Resilience of Services Delivery
Changing demand for services as a
result of the impacts of climate
change is likely to have a significant
effect on local authorities.
For instance, climate changes are
likely to lead to more outdoor
lifestyles resulting in changes in
demand for parks, sporting and
leisure facilities but also to more
littering and noise complaints. Hotter
summers are likely to lead to
changes in pattern of demand for
social and medical support services,
as a result of vulnerable client’s
sensitivity to extreme temperatures
but also increase in public health
related pests, communicable
diseases, food poisoning and air
quality issues among others.
More extreme weather events could
also mean more damage to council
housing stock and buildings,
disruptions to service delivery,
increase in the number of
emergencies and rise in demand for
local authority enforcement action on
littering, fly tipping, noise nuisance,
rogue trading or anti social
behaviour.
LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan
Finally some services may need to
change their character and extend
the range of service, for example the
fuel poverty team may need to start
supplying emergency summer
cooling equipment in addition to
emergency winter heaters provided
at the moment.
In order to ensure effective planning
and delivery of services, Luton
Borough Council has undertaken
incorporating climate change risks
into the corporate management
processes. Climate change issues
have now found a way into business
continuity plans, service delivery
plans and the corporate plan.
Many services have recently
undertaken (or are planning to)
reviews to ensure flexibility in
response to changes in demand and
emergency situations. Job
descriptions are being amended to
include new responsibilities
regarding management of various
risks. Also budgets are being closely
monitored to ensure effective
allocations of finance for revised or
additional provisions.
16
Workforce Capability
Changes in climate towards hotter
summers, milder winters and more
instances of severe weather will
challenge traditional working
methods. Through completing risk
assessments on the effects of
climate change on their service
areas, service managers have
considered some of the issues that
are of particular importance.
Many services operating within Luton
Borough Council recognise that
having flexible staffing arrangements
is a key response to staff shortages,
arising from factors such as severe
weather preventing access to the
workplace.
The main concern for service
managers is threefold:
 The impact of severe weather
on staff access to work
(especially to town centre
locations)
 The effect of extreme weather
(excessive heat/cold) on
working conditions,
productivity and health and
safety of staff
 Meeting demand for services
when staffing levels may be
compromised
LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan
Services are planning, or have made
arrangements through their Business
Continuity Plans for key staff to be
equipped with remote access to their
documents, voicemail and email so
work can be completed from another
location, such as at home. The issue
of managing staff and delivering
services in times when decreased
levels of staffing is coupled with an
increase in demand for services
(such as the call centre in times of
heavy snow, dealing with service
enquiries and requests for
assistance from residents) has also
become apparent, which in turn
needs a flexible approach to working
patterns and locations to deliver the
service level expected.
With the issues raised by service
managers in mind, it is apparent that
there is a need for both
comprehensive guidance for service
managers as to some of the actions
that can be taken to ensure their
workforce remains safe, well and
productive during periods of severe
weather and guidance to employees
to raise general awareness of the
effects of extreme heat or cold and
the impact of climate change.
17
Communicating Climate Change Risks
Luton Borough Council have already
taken steps to build adaptive
capacity into the organisation by fully
assessing the impacts of climate
change across the Council. By
completing a comprehensive risk
based assessment of impacts of
climate change and severe weather
on service delivery, LBC has
identified the services areas that are
most vulnerable to an increase in
instances of severe weather and
long term temperature changes.
LBC have a climate change team,
whose work includes communicating
messages about climate change and
future impacts to residents,
community groups, businesses,
managers and staff. The
communication campaign ‘My
Climate’ is an umbrella campaign
that aims to engage these key
stakeholders. The climate change
team have led many events on the
theme of adaptation and climate
change impacts, both internally with
service managers and externally with
LSP partners.
LBC’s Communications Team is
responsible for communicating
headline messages in times of
LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan
severe weather (for example school
closures) and use a variety of
methods to do this, including radio
and through the LBC website. They
are working to ensure that the
members of staff responsible for this
vital communication link can use
remote working to be able to publish
these messages, even if they are
unable to get to the office in person.
Information Management (IM) have
responsibility for ensuring stability
and reliability of LBC IT and
telecommunications infrastructure
which is vital to communicate
messages within the organisation.
When this may be compromised
(e.g. in times of severe weather,
power cuts etc.) there will be extra
monitoring of systems to spot the
first signs of overheating/ power
interruption and act accordingly.
The Adaptation Action Plan will act
as a communication tool for those
who have not been made aware of
the specific risks that LBC faces as a
result of climate change, as it is
publicly available and regularly
updated to reflect changes in service
priorities.
18
Providing Leadership
Luton Borough Council is ideally
placed to provide guidance and
leadership to many stakeholders and
local authorities can play a vital role
in helping their local community to
become more resilient to extreme
weather and climate change.
Communities look towards their local
authority for support to act on climate
change, but also for guidance on the
impacts of these changes. LBC work
in close partnership with the
Bedfordshire and Luton Local
Resilience Forum (BLLRF) who have
a ‘warning and informing’ procedure
for communicating to residents and
partners during an emergency, such
as a flood. BLLRF, supported by
LBC also promote preparedness for
flooding to residents by encouraging
them to sign up to the Environment
Agency’s ‘Floodline Warnings Direct’
system through a link on the BLLRF
website.
LBC are also well placed to provide
schools with the guidance they need
to adapt to climate change and
manage the risks that it may bring.
The communication channels LBC
has with schools can be used to
LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan
reach children and therefore parents,
by supporting schools to
communicate the issues with
students through the curriculum.
The Sustainable Community
Strategy for Luton- ‘Our vision for
Luton in 2026’ by the LSP states
adapting to climate change as a key
priority to 2014. As a main partner in
the LSP, LBC is actively involved in
organising events to raise awareness
of the effects and risks of climate
change, providing the offer of
support to organisations who want to
look more closely at the risks to their
own service delivery.
LBC services are planning to
encourage more collaboration and
partnership working with statutory
agencies, businesses and the
voluntary sector within the LSP on
adapting to climate change, from
supporting businesses to assess
their own risks to encouraging health
services to look more closely at the
adverse effects of climate change on
health.
19
Next steps
Embedding Adaptive Responses
For this adaptation action plan to be
successfully implemented, it is
fundamental that the authority takes
ownership, reflecting effective
adaptive responses and principles
within its actions and services it
delivers. To fully embed climate
change adaptation a number of
actions, outlined below, will have to
be taken forward by staff, members
and the council as a whole.
Strategic ownership and oversight
Overall management and
responsibility for the plan will lie with
the Sustainability Board. The board,
chaired by the Corporate Director of
Environment and Regeneration, has
responsibility for overseeing
environmental work delivered by the
authority and its partners. Meeting
every eight weeks, the board will
seek updates and support work of
officers to fully implement all the
actions within the plan. The
outcomes of each meeting are
reported via a briefing note which is
presented by the Chair to the Value
for Money Board (VfM) and
Corporate Leaders and Management
Team (CLMT), which are the primary
LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan
management boards for the whole
authority.
Reporting
The Board will review annually the
targets and actions within the plan.
An annual progress report on actions
to date will be presented to the
Executive in April of each year and
the Overview and Scrutiny Board
when requested. The plan will
require updating, when for example
new funding streams become
available or new evidence based
studies or guidance documents are
published. For this reason, the AAP
will be a ‘live’ document, being
reviewed and updated over time,
allowing it to reflect the changing
economic and legislative drivers
around the climate change agenda.
Risks and issues management
The named officer leads within the
plan will have responsibility for the
management of their risks and
opportunities. If risks arise they
should be dealt with within existing
management arrangements. If it is
felt that the risk is not being dealt
with appropriately, the issue will be
reported to the Sustainability Board
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Appendices

Appendix 1: Service Risk Ratings for Luton Borough Council

Dept Service CURRENT CONTROLLED

Chief Scrutiny 9 9
Executives Democratic Services 3 2
Emergency Planning 9 9

Corporate Corporate Assets Management 9 5

&Customer Communications 8 6
Services Corporate Finance 9 9
Customer Services 5 5
Corporate HR 5 2
IM 9 9
Internal Audit 1 1
Legal 5 5
Revenues and Benefits 9 9

Environment Regeneration 5 5
& Environment & Consumer Services 9 5
Regeneration Planning (service/extreme weather) 3 3
Planning (built env/flood) 3 3
Planning (built env/heath) 3 3
RPR 9 5
Fleet Transport (adverse weather) 8 8
Fleet Transport (gradual change) 3 1
Parks Service (adverse weather) 7 7
Parks Service (gradual change) 3 1
Highway Maintenance (adverse weather) 5 2
Highway Maintenance (gradual change) 3 3
Street Cleansing (adverse weather) 5 5
Street Cleansing (gradual change) 3 3
Refuse Collection (adverse weather) 5 5
Refuse Collection (gradual change) 3 1
Community Safety & Enforcement (adverse
weather) 5 5
Community Safety & Enforcement (gradual
change) 3 3

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan

Dept Service CURRENT CONTROLLED
Environment Engineering & Transportation 5 5
& Integrated Transport Programme 7 4
Regeneration Station Quarter 9 7

Children & Integrated Children Services (S,E,C) 2 1

Learning Integrated Children Services (N,W) 2 1
RPR 2 1
School Improvement 3 2

Housing & Housing Landlord (cold) 5 2

Community Housing Landlord (wind) 2 2
Living Housing Landlord (heat/drought) 5 2
Housing Landlord (flood) 3 1
Private Sector Housing (flood) 2 1
Private Sector Housing (wind) 5 2
Private Sector Housing (heat) 5 2
RPR 5 2
Adult Social Care (heatwave/drought) 5 2
Adult Social Care (flood) 3 1
Adult Social Care (excess cold/snow) 5 1
Adult Social Care (wind) 2 1

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan

Appendix 2 Key Actions

Adapting Luton’s built environment to a changing climate

Key action Timeframe Responsibility Partners

Review construction materials specifications to reflect Review every 12 Highways Street

changing temperatures and conditions. Set thresholds for months Engineering Services
materials changes Volker
Highways-
Term
Contractor
Consider health and safety of the workforce when working Ongoing Engineering Street
out on site including appropriate PPE for differing weather Services Services
conditions Volker
Highways-
Term
Contractor
Review road safety measures in place to address the varying Ongoing Road safety Schools
seasonal use of the public highway, including education,
promotion of reflective/hi visibility items, road safety
engineering schemes addressing safer routes to services,
schools etc
Mitigate against extreme weather impacts on Ongoing, review Highways Volker
programmed works every 6 months Engineering Highways-
Work to be reprogrammed in the event of severe weather Term
preventing highway works Contractor
Include policies in the Local Development Framework to 2011/ 2012 Planning
improve design standards for new buildings and for adaption
of existing buildings to withstand periods of extreme hot
weather

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan

Include policies in the Local Development Framework to 2011/ 2012 Planning
minimise the effects on the built environment of periods of
extreme rainfall. Appropriate policies within the LDF to
minimise hard surfaces in key locations, maximise
sustainable drainage systems.
Promote sustainable design principles (including climate Ongoing Planning
change adaptation) among developers
Maintain and refurbish existing buildings to improve resilience Ongoing CAM
to extreme weather events and longer term effects of climate
change.
Regularly review services provided from locations and Ongoing, review CAM
suitability of existing buildings every 3 months
Consider reviewing Asset Management Plan to include 2010/11 CAM
climate change adaptation as a criterion of building suitability
Ensure air conditioning is serviced on a regular basis. Review Ongoing Property
provisions of air conditioning units Services
Review specification of materials used in rigid and flexible 2010/11 Engineering and
pavement types. Consider reviewing skid resistance Transportation
performance criteria
Assess which parts of network are most at risk and prioritise Covered in Engineering and Street
improvements and alternative routes. Assess and prioritise Network Transportation Services
key routes Management and
Congestion
Strategy 2008 -
2012
Ensure adequate levels of drainage maintenance and assess Engineering and Street
and prioritise key routes Transportation Services

Review established resources for winter maintenance. Ongoing, Engineering and Street
Review use of budgets in cases of warm winters. Winter reviewed annually Transportation Services
Maintenance
Review contract conditions to ensure client is protected from As and when Engineering and Risk
contractual claims. Share or transfer risk to contractor contracts are Transportation Management,
prepared Legal

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan

Monitor budgets for exceptional expenditure events. Plan for Annual Finance
future expenditure. Where additional expenditure is highly Programme of Engineering and Street
likely, ensure medium term plan adequately reflects financial Works prepared Transportation Services
need and monitored
monthly

Minimising Flood Risk in Luton

Key action Timeframe Responsibility Partners

Ensure the Luton Strategic Flood Risk Assessment is rolled 2010 LBC BLLRF
out to policy planners, Development Control, Emergency Development
Planners so everyone is aware and making use of the Control
document Luton Flood
Management
Group
Considering EA Map provided on surface water flood risks, Medium Term
identify all Luton-owned bridges, culverts, sewers and drains;
and devise a strategy to establish current condition and
required remedial/ redevelopment work
Work in partnership with the EA to progress the Luton Flood Ongoing Luton Flood Environment
Risk Management Strategy to identify in detail the most Management Agency
effective and sustainable options for managing flood risk. Group
Develop an asset replacement policy to enable existing Short Term LBC
assets to be replaced with more sustainable options through Regeneration
regeneration and redevelopment. LBC Planning
LBC CAM
To collate and map the main flood risk management and September 2011 Luton Flood
drainage assets (over and underground), including a record Management
of LBC ownership and condition. Group
Develop Local Surface Water Management Plans, as set out March 2011 Luton Flood
under PPS25 and coordinated by local authorities to provide Management
the basis for managing all local flood risk. Group

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan

Managing and enhancing Luton’s green infrastructure to improve resilience to a changing climate

Key action Timeframe Responsibility Partners

To review the current policy of the planting of two trees for 2010- 2011 Parks
every one removed

Electronically record the current tree stock and then develop 2010- 2012 Parks
management plans for the street and parks trees

Create a register of all trees in the borough that would be 2010 - 2012 Parks
reviewed annually and include: removals and replacements
and ideally impact on CO2 reduction

Continue to pursue the sponsorship of tree planting for 2010-12 Parks

external companies

Provide training to parks employees and volunteers to Started 2008/9, Parks

increase awareness of parks and green space contribution to ongoing
mitigate against climate change

Open a new allotment site to match the demand in future 2010-13 Parks
years

Ensure that all Park Management Plans include actions to Review annually Parks
mitigate against climate change

Strive to meet targets of the Bedfordshire and Luton Ongoing Parks,

Biodiversity Action Plan Regeneration

Continue to work with partners in respect of Luton flood risk Ongoing Parks
management group , walking and cycling

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan

To continue to improve the parks buildings within existing Review annually Parks
budgets to reduce energy consumption of both water and
fossil fuels

Implement recommendations of the Draft Luton and Long term Planning,

Bedfordshire Green Space Strategy Parks

Increasing resilience of Council’s services delivery

Key action Timeframe Responsibility Partners

To ensure that Luton Borough Council’s Corporate Business Ongoing Corporate

Continuity Plan is full fit for purpose and is able to respond to Directors &
a wide variety of emergency situations, including those Business
brought about by adverse weather conditions Continuity Team
To ensure that individual Business Continuity Plan for all Heads of Business
service areas are full fit for purpose and is able to respond to Service and Continuity
a wide variety of emergency situations, including those Corporate Team
brought about by adverse weather conditions Directors
Regularly review Service Delivery Plans, Departmental Plans Ongoing Heads of Performance,
and the Corporate Plan to reflect potential impacts of climate Service and Business
change and extreme weather based on the most up-to-date Corporate Continuity
evidence based research. Directors Team
To ensure Call Centre capability to deal with increased Ongoing CCS
number of enquiries from the public following an extreme
weather event
Consider increasing monitoring frequency of vulnerable 2010/11 Housing and
customers in periods of extreme temperatures Community
Living
Monitor the numbers of weather related insurance claims to Ongoing Insurance
ensure adequate contingency funds Manager

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan

Monitor the demand on Registration Services Ongoing, Legal
review
Environmental Health to implement recommendations of the 2010 Environment
LEx project to help streamline the processes and drive out and Consumer
waste so that officer’s time is spent more efficiently Services

To adopt more integrated approach to clearing litter and other Ongoing Environment
areas that harbour pests. More emphasis on treating an area and Consumer
rather than individual properties Services

Prioritise environmental health and health and safety Ongoing Environment

enforcement in high risk businesses and trade sectors and Consumer
Services
Carry out air quality assessment in and around the airport Ongoing Environmental
Protection
Work closely with Licensing to ensure all venues make Ongoing Environmental
suitable noise reduction measures. Protection
Operation Butler to deal with noise at weekends as it
happens
Review service activities to ensure efficiency 2009/10 Environmental
Protection
Housing Landlord to review the use partner and agency Ongoing Housing
resources to meet service demands

Housing Landlord services to review vulnerable tenants to Ongoing Housing

enable monitoring in periods of extreme
weather/emergencies
Request assistance from Tenants and Residents Ongoing Housing
Associations in emergencies, develop/review appropriate
procedures
Housing Landlord to complete ongoing stock survey 2010 Housing

To develop procedure for re-commissioning once water 2010/11 Housing

supply is restored

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan

Consider setting aside a contingency fund to monitor and to 2010/11 Housing
deal with subsidence, issues connected with heat wave or
drought or any other damage due to adverse weather
conditions

Improve housing standards and resilience through Decent Ongoing Housing

Homes programme - insulation, new windows, new boilers

To assess all council housing properties in flood risk areas 2011/12 Housing
and develop long term management plans

Increasing Workforce Capability to Adapt to Climate Change

Key action Timeframe Responsibility Partners

All services to review staff remote access/ flexible working Next annual Service
arrangements as part of Business Continuity Plan updates update of BCP’s Managers

Customer Services to provide telephone capability that links 2010 Customer IM

into the current call centre technology to enable staff to work Services
out of locations other than in the town centre Manager
Revenue and Benefits service to look into home working 2010 Revenue and IM
Benefits
Manager
E&R RPR to encourage staff take sufficient breaks and plenty Ongoing RPR Manager E&R HR,
of fluids in times of hot weather Corporate HR
Finance to monitor SSC charges with increased use of fans Ongoing E&R Finance Corporate
and air conditioning units in hot weather Finance

Refuse Collection Service to review clothing requirements 2010 Refuse Trade Unions,
with Health and Safety Team and Trade Unions in light of Collection H&S
changes in weather conditions Manager

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan

Fleet Transport to consider early start times/ later evening 2010 Fleet Manager Corporate &
finish times to avoid the hottest part of the day E&R HR
Housing and Community Living department to consider risk April 2010 HCL Service
assessing some roles for the effects of hot weather, revising Heads
working hours to avoid hottest part of the day and providing
rest periods for staff

HR to consider issuing corporate guidance on working 2010 Corporate HR

arrangements and employee well being in times of excessive with input from
heat/cold and severe weather departmental
HR
Raise staff awareness of the potential impacts of climate 2010/11 Climate Change HR,
change and extreme weather conditions on their work place Team Communicatio
and their individual responsibilities towards building resilience ns,
to those impacts Emergency
Planning
Housing and Community Living (Housing Landlord) to 2010/11 H&S
organise briefings for first aiders to recognise signs of heat
exhaustion

Raising Awareness and Communicating Climate Change Risks

Key action Timeframe Responsibility Partners

Children and Learning department to increase awareness of 2011 Integrated Health

health implications of extreme weather by using existing Children Centres, GP
partnerships with public health colleagues and existing Services Surgeries,
communication channels to schools, children’s centres and Schools,
parents to disseminate information Community
Centres
Climate change team to continue work on raising awareness Ongoing Climate Change Communicatio
of climate change impacts both within LBC and to residents, Team ns
businesses and partners

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan

Environmental and Consumer Services to step up food safety As and when Head of E&CS Food
campaigns (in conjunction with FSA) in times of hot weather needed Standards
when food poisoning risk is increased Agency
Private sector housing to promote to householders insuring Ongoing Private Sector
their home contents against severe weather damage Housing
Ensure that PR and Web staff have remote access for issuing Dec 2010 Communication IM
news releases/ updating website in times of severe weather s Manager
IM to begin to monitor IT installations closely for signs of 2010 IM Manager
overheating/ failure/ power interruption, plan for these events
(through more agile virtual server technology) and act
accordingly

To provide leadership across the Borough in increasing resilience and adapting to climate change

Key action Timeframe Responsibility Partners

To provide assistance and advice to Luton Forum members Ongoing Climate Change Luton Forum
to ensure robust flood resilience and climate change Team Members,
adaptation across the borough esp. ESCC
To continue active engagement and dialog with Luton and Ongoing Climate Change Emergency
Bedfordshire Local Resilience Forum Team Planning,
BLLRF
Distribute (and where necessary initiate development 2010/11 Climate Change Public Health,
of)available specific guidance for supporting vulnerable Team H&S
groups (e.g. children) in extreme weather conditions e.g. safe
sun policies, drinking water provisions guidance etc
Work with museums and libraries to raise awareness of the Ongoing Climate Change Luton Cultural
issues of climate change adaptation. Team Services Trust
To cooperate in delivery of thematic exhibitions in museums 2010/11 Climate Change Luton Cultural
on environment and climate change across the borough in Team Services Trust
2011.
To engage with local businesses to promote business Ongoing Regeneration
continuity planning and climate change adaptive action

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan

Contact
Climate Change Team
Luton Borough Council
Town Hall
01582 546004

LBC Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan