Preparing for a wedding can be a hectic task, with many brides and grooms turning into skilled event planners to create the perfect day they’ve always imagined. There is the venue to think of, outfits, flowers, transport, catering, invitations…the list often seems endless!
What can make this enjoyable task somewhat more complicated, is if you are trying to put sustainable and environmental principles at the very heart of your wedding. Judging by the increasing amount of green wedding fairs and businesses that cater to the more eco-conscious couple, this is a growing concern for couples today.
Here at Fountains we’ve recognised this and want to be able to respond better to couples who incorporate greener choices into their everyday life, and who think their wedding should be no exception.
Here are some facts we think you may like to know about Fountains:
• All of the money spent on venue hire goes straight back on to the estate, ensuring the conservation of this special place for future generations.
• If you hold your reception in the Visitor Centre Restaurant, all of the food will adhere to the National Trust Food Policy ensuring that wherever possible it is seasonal, organic and local. If you would like to read the full policy, please click here.
• We attempt to minimise any written correspondence, preferring to contact couples via email. If we do send letters they are printed on recycled paper following the National Trust’s green paper policy.
• The estate is currently running an energy reduction project which aims to record and then cut our energy usage by 20%. We also have a committed Green Team that ensures the environment remains high on our agenda.
• Our newest projects implement the latest innovative building techniques including:
o Ground source heat pumps
o Local sheep’s wool for insulation
o Local timber for structural timbers, cladding, joinery, fittings and internal/external
furniture
o Passive solar gain and passive ventilation
As Fountains is a protected World Heritage Site it is often difficult to adopt
modern environmental techniques that do not destroy the fabric of the historic
buildings we take care of. However, our newer projects all have environmental
principles deeply embedded in the planning process in order to build a sustainable
future for the estate.
If you’re passionate about sustainability and want your wedding to have as little negative impact on the environment as possible, then no doubt you’ll want other aspects of your wedding to be sustainable. Therefore we’ve joined forces with three Yorkshire wedding businesses who share our passion for the environment and who work sustainability in their businesses.
Cherry Gorgeous - beautiful and unique wedding stationery
Twisted Willow - bespoke and personal floristry
Olivia Brabbs - timeless photography with a modern edge
To ensure that we all share the same sustainable credentials we worked closely with the National Trust’s procurement and environmental practices team to draw up a ‘Sustainability Checklist’. This covers areas such as minimising waste, recycling, sourcing of supplies and working with the local community.
We hope that by joining forces we can raise the profile of sustainable weddings and equip couples with the knowledge and inspiration to make informed choices about their wedding day. By working together, sharing best practice and sharing our experiences with the public we will drive both ourselves, and others, towards improving environmental standards.
Watch this space for news about upcoming workshops where we’ll give you hints and tips on making your day as sustainable as possible.
