Named a ‘flagship’ Edge Hill University building, the Durning Centre achieved a ‘Highly Commended’ award at this year’s prestigious Green Gown Awards.

Now in their 7th year, the awards recognise exceptional initiatives from universities and colleges across the UK to become more sustainable.

The University’s new Durning Centre, was nominated in the Sustainable Construction and Refurbishment category.

At the forefront of innovative thinking and sustainable development, it has been built with a difference. It is totally heated by recovered waste energy and provides heating to two other University buildings. This has removed the need for a gas fired boiler plant at the building and made improvements in energy use at two other adjacent buildings.

In the year since it opened, the Durning Centre has achieved a 33% reduction in CO₂ emissions and 46% reduction in energy use for the same services in the previous building from July 2010.