HeatHack Workshops
HeatHack aims to help community buildings save energy. HeatHack has developed a specialised version of their workshops for the Scottish Episcopal Church. We are hugely thankful to HeatHack for this resource.
Keep an eye on our Stories page for case studies of churches that have run HeatHack workshops already. Here are some examples:
Step 1: Gather a team
Gather a small team of around six volunteers, including someone who is a vestry member and someone who has an engineering background (or won’t be too phased by looking at some data!).
It also helps to have someone with responsibility for the property who will know more about the building e.g. how the heating controls work etc. Without this person, you may be unable to answer certain questions that arise during the workshops.
Step 2: Set meeting dates
Fix your meeting dates as soon as you have a team on board. Most groups run 3 or 4 sessions, each lasting 2 hours.
Getting dates can often cause delays but remember that the sooner you get started, the sooner you can start saving on energy and bills.
Step 3: Gather data
Purchase a couple of thermal and humidity data loggers e.g. the ThermoPro TP357 Bluetooth Hygrometer Mini Room Thermometer. Set these up in various locations around your building.
These will provide data on current comfort-levels of the various spaces within your church or hall. You will use these data during the workshop sessions.
Step 4: Run workshops
The HeatHack workshops are self-led sessions, which can be found here. A pack of HeatHack cards can be sent to you from your Diocesan office, or the General Synod office. You will use these for the card game during the workshops. There is a HeatHack Guidebook for additional information.
Get in touch with Bethany Nelson from the Net Zero team to tell us about your group and ask any questions you have. Each church will find different aspects of the workshops helpful, so feel free to tailor the sessions according to your situation.
Step 5: Keep in touch
Keep in touch with Bethany Nelson both during and after the programme, so that the Net Zero team can help you onto the next stage of decarbonising your church.
To access the information contained within the HeatHack cards, visit the Net Zero Toolkit. Exploring this information before starting HeatHack, will give your team a head-start.