HILLINGDON’S hospital trust has won a National Sustainability Award.

At the second annual awards ceremony in London, on Thursday (6), Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, won the Transformation Award for its efforts to make its two hospitals – Hillingdon and Mount Vernon – as environmentally friendly as possible.

The trust is preparing to build a new hospital to replace the current one in Pield Heath Road, and its sustainability team hopes to carry on the good work once it is built.

Hillingdon’s Fast Forward Sustainability programme included everything from the small differences - such as offices free of personal waste bins, to steer staff towards waste separation – to 100% renewable energy use.

It was also the first trust in the country to have an electric-powered ambulance and an electric tower and trailer that collects recycling bags.

Nothing is wasted if it can be helped, and staff are encouraged to put unwanted items, from office furniture to stationery to unused toner cartridges, on to the website – and ask for items they need.

Other achievements include on-site power generation, with £280,000 of annual energy savings and a 45 per cent carbon emission cut in buildings.

The project, which began in spring 2020 when COVID-19 was raging, recognised the need for rapid change once things returned to normal.

Hyder Mohammad, Sustainability Lead for the trust, said: “There’s a lot more work to be done, but this recognises that, for the last two and-a-half years, we’ve been on the right path.”