What we mean by monitoring use
We mean the regular taking and recording of meter readings for all your utilities (electricity, gas, oil, water). In addition readings should be presented in a way that is meaningful to school users and managers.
What are the benefits of monitoring use?
If you are not monitoring your consumption, you will not be able to know whether your energy and water management activities are having an effect. Moreover, you will not be able to spot problems early on and take action to reduce their effects on your budgets or on all the hard work you are putting in.
How to get started - monitoring use
Find out where all your meters are. In the case of oil, LPG, coal or wood deliveries, it may be better to keep a record of your delivery date and amount if there is no direct way to measure consumption.
To be able to see any initial trends, you should plot this information against time to get a visual display of consumption over the year. Sustainable Learning offers tools to registered schools to help them in this area.
How Sustainable Learning helps registered schools monitoring use
Registered schools have access to a monitoring tool. Once you have completed the initial questions, the tool will email you on a monthly basis with a request for readings. We will then provide you with immediate commentary on your consumption based on the information you have supplied, including any abnormal usage patterns and suggestions as to why this may be the case.
Where to get further information
The Carbon Trust’s free guide ‘A Whole School Approach’ (CTV037) provides some introductory information on monitoring consumption and benchmarking your school.
