COUNTY Hall has been handed a prestigious award following an "ambitious" retrofit programme run in Tendring and Harlow.

Run by Essex County Council, the Harlow and Tendring Retrofit Pipeline for Economic Renewal programme was awarded at annual ceremony hosted by the Association of Directors of Environment, Economy, Planning and Transport.

The programme won the Delivering Clean Growth award and was hailed by judges for being “out of the ordinary” and offering “a very specific and tailored approach to a real world problem”.

The programme was funded by the UK Community Renewal Fund and saw 248 residents receive fully funded retrofit qualifications.

Retrofitting is the process of adding additional functionality to existing buildings to make them more sustainable, such as by installing heat pumps or solar panels.

Focussing on Harlow and Tendring, the programme saw the council partner with the Retrofit Academy CIC (TRA) to deliver qualifications from Level 2 to 5.

Lesley Wagland, cabinet member for economic renewal, infrastructure and planning, said: “We are thrilled to have received the Delivering Clean Growth award, which demonstrates our commitment to tackling climate change and delivering our net-zero targets.

“The programme was both highly ambitious and innovative in its approach.

"We are proud that its impact on both individuals and businesses has been formally recognised at such a distinguished ceremony.”