LiveGreen:Keele visit East Staffs Exemplar Property

If your a regular visitor to the house, you will be aware of our overuse of the word 'exemplar'. However, East Staffordshire council really have used the word wisely here. Today saw the official opening of the their brand new show house displaying almost every type of sustainable technology which can be used within the standard family home.

Entrance to the property

As Dr Robinson, Carl and I walked down the road lined with terrace housing, we realised that this really is a great example of house sustainability can be implemented into literally any area or house. On arrival, the mayor cut the appropriately green ribbon and declared the house open. 

 The project leader Peter Robinson (no relation to Dr. Zoe Robinson), a current Keele masters student and East Staffs Climate Change Officer, hosts a variety of new technologies such as insulating wallpaper, light reflective paint, solar PV and a rainwater harvesting system to name but a few.

Although this property is not being lived in currently, Carl and I were able to take away some key points on how to present a sustainable house to the public.

 

The Kitchen

We particularly liked the quotes written on the walls for example which stood out and act as a simple form of decoration. Hopefully in the coming months, our property on campus will develop into something which resembles this exemplar property, with the added bonus of recycling and energy data to match.

Congratulations to all those involved in the new exemplar property and we wish you all the best for the future.

For more information on their property, visit:

http://www.eaststaffsbc.gov.uk/services/pages/exemplarproperty.aspx

The exemplar garden- complete with a 'minibug mansion'

Author: James Adams

A few snaps of what we've been up to.....

After deciding getting to lectures in a wheel barrow was more energy efficient (and also more stylish) than on foot, Environment and Sustainability student Ben Wallbridge hopped into the wheelbarrow Luke had kindly bought from the local garden centre earlier on that morning and was mercilessly pushed/catapulted along by Carl....

While putting the wheel barrow to more useful means, we took  a few snaps of just how much fun you can have when building raised vegetable beds.....

Drilling old planks (used to build the Forth bridge, East Scotland) together to form the raised vegetable beds,

  

Plank circuit ready for the wheel barrows!

Nothing like shifting a few tons of soil after a lecture!

And all done!

Oh, and almost forgot to mention we've been growing some more runner beans.....

Hoping to plant them in the Spring!

A week of media frenzy!!

Our bungalow has really been in the spotlight this week - John Collins from bbc radio stoke coming along to interview the four of us, enthusiastically posing questions on the benefits of sustainable living and the project in general was great fun. Special interest was shown in the garden - putting together the raised beds for the vegetables, getting a compost bin going and looking at ways of getting students and the local community thinking about issues of sustainability. We hope to hear our news broadcast on bbc stoke and up for listening on bbc iplayer in the not too distant future.

Soil being delivered by Keele estates, thanks guys!

And here the raised vegetable beds almost done - 

And.......done -

And a few leeks and broccoli added for good measure!!

Following this, Keele's vice chancellor Nick Forsket also dropped by to have a look at our freshly planted leeks and runner beans and we were bowled over by such support shown by him and the university.

Along with all that Keele's student magazine Concourse has published a piece on the bungalow raising awareness of our project, so feel free to pick a copy or two from the students union!