✔ 68% of people in the West Midlands want a green alternative to fossil fuels
✔ 64% plan to buy green tech in the next year – more than any other region
✔ 87% are worried about climate change
The West Midlands is keener to go green than any other region in the UK, according to our most recent National Home Energy Survey.
The county, which includes the likes of Birmingham, Wolverhampton, and Coventry, beat out more stereotypically eco-conscious areas like Greater London, Scotland, and south-east England.
Our survey spoke to 1,150 respondents about a wide range of green issues – and the people of the West Midlands showed their eco-friendly credentials in many of them.
Green passion in the West Midlands
The West Midlands’ enthusiasm for cutting emissions and energy bills with eco-friendly technology is visible in many of our findings.
How has the birthplace of Cadbury’s, Black Sabbath, and William Shakespeare climbed to the top of our green rankings?
Let us count the ways.
A green desire
When asked if the current state of energy bills made them more inclined to choose a renewable alternative to fossil fuels, 68% of respondents in the West Midlands said yes – the highest number of any region.
It wasn’t close either, with Greater London finishing five percentage points behind in second place.
The proof is in the pudding
Over the past 12 months, the West Midlands has solidified its claim to the green crown.
The region has the highest proportion of respondents who’ve bought an electric vehicle in this period, and the joint-second-highest percentage of solar panel purchasers.
The future is green
The West Midlands once again came out top in this section, showing its people’s appetite for going green in the immediate future.
64% said they planned on buying green technology over the next year – which was a sizable six percentage points ahead of Greater London in second place.
This was clearly associated with the region’s enthusiasm for solar power.
21% of West Midlands respondents said they planned to purchase solar panels, while 10% intended to get a solar thermal installation, and 10% expected to buy a solar battery.
A dream world
We asked respondents all over the UK to pick the pieces of eco-friendly technology they’d get if money was no object – and the West Midlands’ enthusiasm shone through.
Just 5% of people from the region told us they wouldn’t buy any green tech, compared to the 15% in Greater London who said they wouldn’t want green tech, even if it was free.
And for a local comparison, look to the East Midlands, where 12% of respondents would refuse free eco-friendly products.
In fact, out of every UK region, only Northern Ireland had a greener result than the West Midlands in this category.
Climate change has had an impact
It’s important to clarify that the movement towards green energy and technology in the West Midlands is about more than cutting their energy bills.
This was clear when we asked about climate change anxiety. 87% of people in the West Midlands said they were worried about climate change, the third-highest percentage in the UK.
And it wasn’t a minor concern for them, either. The West Midlands had the second-highest percentage of people who were extremely anxious about climate change – 24% – with only Wales scoring higher.
An eco-friendly plan
The region’s administrative body, the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), must take a lot of credit for fueling the drive towards an eco-friendly future.
In 2019, the WMCA was one of the first bodies to declare a climate emergency, then it set a goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2041.
The authority has dedicated £5 million to its first five-year plan, and has taken enough positive steps to be one of just 17 local and combined authorities in the UK to be included on the A List of the Carbon Disclosure Project, a global climate non-profit.
And its plans for reaching net-zero have been awarded a score of 89% by another non-profit, Climate Emergency UK – the second-best in the UK, behind Somerset West and Taunton Council.
Summary
Several regions may feel they have a claim to being the most eco-friendly in the UK, but when it comes to sheer passion, people in the West Midlands go above and beyond.
It’s not just words, either – West Midlands respondents have put their money where their mouths are by investing in electric vehicles and solar panels.
And the WMCA’s actions show this desire is present in the region from top to bottom.
Maybe if we all took a leaf from West Midlands’ book, we’d have a better country – and planet.
