New electric fleet for Meals at Home service

Every day our Meals at Home service delivers nutritiously-balanced, ready to eat hot dishes to over 200 residents across the local area, as part of the Community Services Partnership between Surrey Heath and Runnymede Borough Councils.

Switching to electric vans will decrease carbon emissions by at least 1.1 tonnes per vehicle a year. This means a total estimated saving of at least 7.7 tonnes per year across the partnership’s fleet of vehicles, which will contribute towards each Council’s ambition of delivering Carbon Net Zero on their operations by 2030.

The previous fleet delivering Meals at Home relied on diesel-powered vans, which also used diesel to power their ovens. Although the ovens will remain diesel-powered due to no other alternative options being available, the change to electric vehicles will contribute towards the Council’s Climate Change Strategy, and also help secure the sustainability of this invaluable service going forward.

Providing meals directly to people’s front doors helps residents to continue living independently, while the regular visits by our friendly drivers also act as a welfare check, offering reassurance to those receiving the service, and their loved ones.

Cllr Chris Howorth, chair of the Community Services Committee at Runnymede Borough Council said:

I am delighted that this valued community service is moving to a more sustainable and environmentally friendly model.
 

Changing over to electric vans will allow us to continue delivering the same excellent service, seven days a week, but without the detrimental impact diesel vehicles have on our environment.
 

Moving this part of our vehicle fleet to electric vehicles is a practical sign of our commitment to reducing our emissions and working towards Net Zero 2030 as we committed to in our Climate Change Strategy.

Cllr John Skipper, Surrey Heath Portfolio Holder for Leisure, Culture and Community said:

This switch to electric vehicles across our Meals at Home service is a welcome move as part of our wider aim to be Carbon Net Zero by 2030.
 

This vital service is so important to many of our most vulnerable residents, and I’m pleased that by updating our fleet to electric vehicles we are making it more sustainable, while continuing to support residents to live independently.

Cllr Lewis, resident Norman and Cllr Howorth admire the new electric van

As part of its wider Community Services offer, the Partnership’s Meals at Home service is available seven days a week, with no minimum sign up period. Meals can be requested for as short or as long as needed, daily, or just for specific days each week.

A range of dietary and cultural requirements are catered for, including vegetarian, reduced sugar, gluten free, soft diet, halal and kosher.

You can learn more about our Meals at Home service on either the Runnymede Borough Council website or the Surrey Heath Borough Council website