St John’s Church of England Primary School in Danbury is committed to decarbonising the school’s estate by 2030 and has recently achieved a major step toward its goal.  Following a failure with one of the swimming pool gas boilers, the school took the decision to update the complete heating system for the pool.

The new system comprises two high efficiency air source heat pump systems, one to heat the pool water and a second to heat and condition the air within the pool building.

The new system will reduce the yearly CO₂ emissions from the pool by 84% and ultimately emissions will fall to zero when the national grid electricity system is fully decarbonised. The school already has solar panels on its roof.

The swimming pool is a valuable asset to the school and wider community and has long-standing memories for many local families who learnt to swim in it.

Children have swimming lessons throughout their time at St John’s School and most leave being able to swim over 800 metres. Due to the nature of the huge investment, the school has a shortfall on funding for the refurbishment and has set up a crowd funding page to help hit the goal and greatly appreciate any donation.