Comment by Stephanie Parker, Senior Advisor Decarbonisation – Complex Sites at Energy Systems Catapult.

Whether you’re in the final throes of preparing your Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme application or planning for future projects, here’s a must-do checklist for public sector professionals.

The Chancellor’s recent Autumn Budget announced a significant commitment: over £1 billion for the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS) over the next three financial years. This commitment promises a steady flow of cost and carbon-saving building upgrades across the public sector in England. But before we can celebrate the opportunities, there’s an important deadline looming.

The PSDS Phase 4 portal closes at 2pm on 25 November 2024. If you’re among the many public sector professionals applying for this round, you’ll no doubt be feeling the pressure to ensure your application is submission-ready.

To help, the Public Sector Decarbonisation Guidance, commissioned by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), provides essential guides and checklists that can help finalise your application fast, as well as support longer-term planning. Whether you’re applying now or looking ahead to future decarbonisation projects, here’s how they can help you.

Final stages of PSDS prep? Five must-check resources

If you’re in the final stages of preparing your PSDS Phase 4 application, here are five essential ‘to dos’ before the deadline.

1. Check local grid capacity. Many heat pumps projects have stalled where teams realise too late that there isn’t sufficient electrical capacity on their site, or there are unforeseen additional costs to upgrade local electricity capacity. Avoid this common project pitfall with our quick guide, which helps you to check and plan for local DNO capacity.
2. Ensure your business case is watertight. This Business Case checklist makes it quick and easy to confirm you’ve covered all bases – and like all the guidance, it’s government vetted.
3. Align with local heat networks. To maximise your chances of success in Phase 4, ensure that you’ve fully considered how heat networks might impact your plans for decarbonising heat. This Heat Networks guide has been developed with DESNZ to help you to navigate district heat connections, zoning regulations, and compatibility for your buildings and projects.
4. Find the right procurement framework. Our quick-to-view Procurement Routes and Frameworks list makes it easier to find the right suppliers for your project. While the new Procurement Act comes into force in February 2025, these frameworks can still be used until they expire and will continue to be governed under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015.
5. Strengthen your case for cost-effectiveness. Unlike previous first-come, first-served approaches, Phase 4 applications will be ranked in terms of cost-effectiveness. Projects where saving each tonne of carbon costs least, are more likely to get funded. This makes understanding your energy and decarbonisation data more important than ever. Use our What Do the Numbers Mean? guide to strengthen your carbon-saving case.

Supporting your planning year

Once again PSDS Phase 4 will offer applicants greater flexibility to plan their projects with the option to take a ‘planning year’ before starting funded project work. This allows time for more effective project design and supplier engagement. (Private sector partners should also take note. Many public sector organisations may still be looking for partners during a planning year, offering an opportunity to support project scoping and design.)

The Theme 2: Feasibility and Design toolkit of resources is invaluable for applicants considering this approach, and their current or potential partners. Resources feature government-backed tools, templates, and guides specifically developed to help users better scope projects, and to more effectively engage skilled partners to undertake often complex feasibility and design studies.

Another recently launched guide maps public sector decarbonisation projects against the stages set out in the Royal Institute of British Architects’ (RIBA) Plan of Works, setting out activities you might expect to see at each stage for decarbonisation retrofit projects. You can download the RIBA-aligned guide for free here.

Supporting successful projects, with or without PSDS funding

The full suite of Public Sector Decarbonisation Guidance is designed to help public sector teams and partners plan and deliver their decarbonisation programme, regardless of whether your project is funded through PSDS.

The guidance is organised into seven themes that cover each stage of your decarbonisation project journey, from strategy to implementation to evaluation:

1. Developing your strategy
2. Feasibility and design
3. Procurement
4. Funding
5. Installation
6. Commissioning and handover
7. Monitoring and evaluation

Resources are predominantly aimed at energy and estate teams in larger organisations, such as local authorities, blue light services, universities and hospitals, and bridge the gap between non-technical and technical roles, helping everyone to speak the same language. Time-saving guides cover areas such as stakeholder engagement, governance, and low-carbon heating technologies.

Next steps:

• Rushing to meet the PSDS deadline? Download the top five quick guides and checklists above now.
• Thinking about or taking a planning year? Check out Theme 2 for all Feasibility and Design
• Want to give your decarbonisation strategy the best chance of success? Get all guides, tools, and templates at the Public Sector Decarbonisation Guidance.

Good luck with your applications and projects – and do feel free to drop us a line at psdecarbguidance@es.catapult.org.uk if you have any questions along the way.