Whatley Manor is UK's first Climate Positive hotel
Whatley Manor Hotel at Malmesbury has announced that it is the first Climate Positive hotel and spa in the UK. This remarkable milestone underscores the hotel’s commitment to urgent climate action and environmental stewardship by removing more carbon from the atmosphere than it emits, each year leading the way in an important industry sector that needs to step up and take greater responsibility.
Whatley Manor implemented a comprehensive sustainability and decarbonization strategy starting February 2019 that combined efforts to address climate change with energy efficiency, waste reduction, community engagement and funding climate action.
Hotel owners, Christian Landolt expressed his pride and excitement about the hotel’s achievement, “At Whatley Manor Hotel, we believe that luxury should not come at the expense of the environment. Becoming the first Climate Positive hotel in the UK is a testament to the team’s dedication to create a positive impact on the planet while delivering an exceptional guest experience. Despite our significant achievements so far, there is still much to do, our actions do not stop here and we cannot / will not rest on our laurels. We are committed to achieving Climate Positive each year to ensure we carry on being responsible for more than our current emissions, respecting nature, people and planet.”
Whatley Manor have partnered with NOW Transforming Hospitality GmbH and EarthCheck for an accountable and transparent integrated sustainability programme that use a science-based approach to measure and benchmark, audit and certify; to build capacity and report its sustainability actions to inform and engage the support of its stakeholders; and to avoid accusations of greenwash. The hotel spent 5 years maximising the reduction of its Scope 1, 2 and 3 carbon emissions and achieved EarthCheck Silver Certified in September 2022, then joined the NOW Climate Positive Programme to access extensive support and a selection of high integrity, climate action projects.
Whatley Manor funded climate action by investing in a Cookstove Project in Kenya and purchased high-quality carbon credits certified by Gold Standard to offset more than its residual 1778 tonnes of CO2 emitted in 2022 to achieve Climate Positive and support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). SDG 3 Good Health & Wellbeing by replacing traditional cookstoves in low-income households and improving indoor air quality. SDG 5 Gender Equality by stopping the need to collect charcoal and fuelwood so women can spend time on education and other opportunities. Companies manufacturing and distributing the cookstove technology provide employment. Livelihood is improved through financial savings in fuel purchase. SDG 7 Affordable & Clean Energy by providing efficient bio-ethanol fuel cookstoves. SDG 13 Climate Action by reducing deforestation, black carbon and other greenhouse gases.
