People and Planet
The University's results are published against 14 criteria, and we are committed in our Strategic Plan to achieve a top 50 position.
Information to support the 14 criteria which are assessed may be found throughout the University's webpages. However, we have provided below some of the detail which supports our assessment.
Policy and Strategy
- Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2040
- Scope 3 emissions by 2050
Staff and HR
We seek to encourage our staff and students to create a real community of interaction and engagement on campus, turning academic offices into studies, and student study spaces into vibrant places for learning. The Sustainability Manager is the key contact for all aspects of Sustainability at Hope and our Strategic Lead is the Executive Director of Finance Services and Resources; contact details can be found on our 'key contacts' tab on the About us page.
Creating a greener, more sustainable Hope can only be achieved with the help of our staff and students. There are a number of active groups that staff can be a part of. You can find out more on the 'groups' tab on the Get involved page.
We report annually on our staff records to the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) including information on the proportion of staff on fixed term contracts.
Ethical Investment and Banking
We signed the Fossil Free Declaration in February 2024 excluding fossil fuel companies from any of our investment holdings. Read about how we joined a Fossil Free campaign.
Our finance and staff finance pages provide further information, including our facts and figures and statements of accounts.
Ethical careers and recruitment
Our aim is to recruit quality staff for both academic and support roles in a fair, structured and supportive manner, underpinned by our Recruitment and Selection Policy. Visit our Careers & Employability webpages to find out more information.
Carbon Management
We are committed to maintaining, and where possible, enhancing the quality of the environment for staff and students living and working at the University; not just because we have to, but because it is embedded within our philosophy, mission and values.
We have set net zero targets of:
- Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2040
- Scope 3 emissions by 2050
Further information and details of the steps we are taking to reduce our impact can be found throughout the Sustainability webpages, our carbon management page and within our Carbon Reduction Plan 2020-2025. You can also view our carbon footprint reports on the 'Policies and plans' tabs on the About us webpage.
Did you know: We have received over £2.2M in public sector decarbonisation scheme grants to decarbonise several buildings within the University portfolio and we have now electrified 25% of our estate.
Did you know: The majority of our emissions are from Scope 3 sources and we are working to produce a comprehensive Scope 3 emission footprint. Following this, a reduction and management plan will be developed in consultation with staff and students, which will set out how we will achieve our net zero targets by 2050, if not sooner.
Did you know: all of our residential accommodation is provided in-house and its carbon footprint was 637 tonnes in 2022-2023 (Scope 1 gas, Scope 2 electricity and Scope 3 water and wastewater).
Staff and Student Engagement
Sustainability is included at all staff and student inductions, as well as the student notebook issued at the start of the year and accommodation's Moving In Guide. There are also a number of sustainability groups that staff and students are more than welcome to join.
You can read some of our recent sustainability news stories below, and more can be read on the Get involved webpage.
Lending a hand in Childwall Woods
Food sustainability discussed at new event
Teacher swaps the classroom for UK's wild spaces
Education for Sustainable Development
OurLearning, Teaching and Assessment Strategyplaces sustainability as the number 1 graduate attribute; further information can be found on the Graduate Attributes tab. In the context of a changing world, every Hope graduate will have 'a clear understanding of their social, ethical and sustainability responsibility’.
One of the key outcomes of our Strategic Plan is to address environmental sustainability in the curriculum. We have created a curriculum working group to further embed this across the faculty offerings and the Creative Campus has a dedicated sustainability Learning and Teaching Community of Practice (further details can be found on the groups tab of the Get Involved page). Examples of environmental sustainability within the curriculum and research can be found below and within the Faculty webpages.
Humanities activity in the natural environment, and environmental sustainability activity since 2021.
Professor Bryce Evans is a leading voice around UK food poverty, food policy, and communal feeding.
Dr Annalaura Alifuoco, Senior Lecturer in Drama and Performance Studies, has been awarded £20,000 of funding as part of the Ecological Citizen(s) project.
Workers' Rights
Sustainable Food
The catering department at Liverpool Hope University is proudly in-house, to the benefit of our staff and students.
We are committed to providing a high-quality catering and hospitality service. We recognise that the procurement, preparation, service and delivery of food and drink on our campuses has a large impact on the environment. To minimise the impact of our activities, we embed sound ethical, social and environmental practices, both when procuring goods and services required for the delivery of hospitality across all of our food outlets, and when preparing and serving food and drink. Our Sustainable Catering Policy sets out our commitments and you can read more information on the 'Food and drink' webpage.
We have been awarded a 2 star Food Made Good Standard awarded by the Sustainable Restaurant Association. Our catering outlets have been independently audited and certified and we are progressing our plans to achieve 3-stars when we are reassessed in two years.
Energy Sources
The University purchases zero carbon for business electricity and generates its own electricity via solar panels across our campus (we generated 128,000kWh in 2022-2023).
We have reduced our electricity usage by 18.8% and gas by 34.6% in 2022-2023 from a 2005-2006 baseline despite a growth in building footprint.
We report annually on our electricity and gas consumption data (for both residential and non-residential buildings) and the power generated by solar PV to the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) as part of the publicly available Estates Management Record.
Waste and Recycling
We send zero waste to landfill. During the 2022-2023 academic year, the University produced over 385 tonnes of waste from its halls of residence, academic buildings, catering outlets and grounds, and recycled an estimated 54% through segregation of food waste, paper, card, plastic bottles, cans and glass. We aim to follow the waste hierarchy to reduce the amount of waste produced in the first instance; and then to prioritise re-using and recycling materials before recovery/disposal as detailed within our recycling and waste pages.
We report annually on our waste and recycling data (excluding construction waste) to the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) as part of the publicly available Estates Management Record.
Carbon Reduction
The University is committed to becoming net zero by 2040 for its Scope 1 and 2 emissions and 2050 for its Scope 3 emissions as detailed in our Carbon Reduction Plan 2020-2025 and further information about our commitments and projects can be found throughout our sustainability pages.
We report annually on our Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions (where available) to the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) as part of the publicly available Estates Management Record and our carbon footprint is reported in the ‘policies and plans’ tab of the About us webpage.
Water Reduction
Water is a precious resource and we tend to take it for granted. It's one of our basic needs, essential for life, and vital for the economy.
We have reduced our water usage by 29% between 2005-2006 and 2022-2023. Further information about projects and how we are managing usage can be found on our water pages.
We report annually on our water, grey water and waste water usage to the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) as part of the publicly available Estates Management Record.