Latest news from Sussex Green Living

The Float at MSDC Playday in Burgess Hill

When a Community Comes Together to get a Float Back on the Road

8 September 2026/in Education, Events, Fundraising, Green Business, Transport/by Elisabeth

Early August brought an unexpected setback for Sussex Green Living when its iconic electric Eco Float broke down. After a complex recovery, the float was finally towed onto a trailer and taken to The Milk Float Company in nearby Alford, where Len – who has spent his life maintaining and rebuilding milk floats – was able to assess the problem. His prognosis was clear: the Eco Float needed a new control panel and accelerator, at a cost of £1,550.

For a small charity, an unexpected repair bill of this size could have been a major obstacle. But what happened next was a powerful reminder of the value of local community support. Read more

GS Creative Photography

New youth project highlights care for local ecology in Westergate

8 September 2026/in Biodiversity & Nature, Children & nature, Education, Take Action, Uncategorised/by Elisabeth

Students from Ormiston Six Village Academy have unveiled a massive (40m) new mural along with dynamic new signs for local bins, as part of a project they have designed to increase respect for the natural world in their area.

Developed with input from the whole school community, the project supported a number of students in Years 8 – 10 to work with two commissioned artists – selected by them – to create art interventions in the school’s local Westergate village intended to inspire greater respect for the natural world locally. Read more

Bex Bastable

Why solar has been our best home investment

8 September 2026/in Uncategorised/by Elisabeth

When we moved into our Sussex new-build a few years back, we knew the bills would be steep. We were a family of four, the cost-of-living crisis was in full swing, and with two young children, the washing machine was never going to get a rest. Nervous about rising costs, we looked into solar and decided to take the plunge. Read more

Pexel

Going Beyond Recycling Towards Less Plastic

8 September 2026/in Money saving ideas, Recycling, Repair Cafe, Single use plastic, Take Action/by Elisabeth

Sussex Green Living is appealing to the public to keep going with a plastic free life in 2026 and beyond.

Why is recycling plastic not enough? While some of the plastic we recycle is turned into new products, much of it is exported or incinerated. Although energy recovery from burning plastic is often counted within waste management, plastic is made from fossil fuels that took millions of years to form, so burning it is not a sustainable solution. The biggest climate impact, however, comes long before plastic reaches us. According to the OECD, around 90% of greenhouse gas emissions from plastics occur during production and manufacturing. Read more

RHS

Sussex Green Living receive the Defra National Bees Needs Champions Award from Nature Minister Mary Creagh at RHS Wisley

8 September 2026/in Biodiversity & Nature, Education, Events, Green Business, Take Action, Uncategorised/by Elisabeth

At Sussex Green Living, we are delighted and honoured to have been recognised at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) National Bees Needs Champions Awards at RHS Wisley on 14 July. Our Pollination Education Station (PES) Trail across Sussex received national recognition for its contribution to supporting pollinators and educating communities about the vital role they play in our environment. Read more

How to help butterflies thrive

7 September 2026/in Biodiversity & Nature, Ecology, Events, Take Action/by Elisabeth

Sadly, of the UK’s 59 butterfly species, 33 have been in decline in recent years, with favourites like the once common Small Tortoiseshell on the brink of disappearing altogether in parts of southeast England. But there are lots of ways we can all help our butterflies thrive. You can get involved by volunteering with a local conservation group such as Wild About Warnham, or your local branch of Butterfly Conservation. Or why not take some simple steps to make your garden more butterfly-friendly? Read more

Geoff Hunt

Wild Gardening: creating a beautiful refuge for wildlife

7 September 2026/in Biodiversity & Nature, Climate Hub, Take Action/by Elisabeth

Across the UK, many natural spaces have become either overly tidy or ecologically depleted. Hedges and scrubland have been cleared, wildlife habitats have disappeared and large areas of farmland are regularly treated with pesticides and weedkillers.

Our gardens can help fill this gap by providing much-needed refuge for wildlife. In fact, suburban gardens now support more hedgehogs than much of the surrounding countryside.

With a few simple changes to the way we manage our outdoor spaces, we can help reverse this decline and create places where nature can thrive. Read more

Could you be Sussex Green Living’s London Marathon runner?

26 August 2026/in Events, Fundraising, Take Action, Uncategorised/by Elisabeth

We’ve been allocated one charity place in the 2027 TCS London Marathon for the event taking place on Saturday, 24th April. We’re looking for a runner who is passionate about making a difference for our local environment and communities, will enjoy being an ambassador for Sussex Green Living and is confident they can raise a minimum of £1,800 through sponsorship.

How to Develop Healthier Soil That Pollinators Can’t Resist

12 August 2026/in Biodiversity & Nature, Take Action/by Elisabeth

Did you know a bee needs to visit 660 flowers to make just one drop of honey? And that a third of our food is thanks to the pollinators? Pollinators, which include bees, butterflies, moths, beetles and even birds and bats, are vital to our ecosystems and biodiversity.

People’s Emergency Briefing film

9 July 2026/in Uncategorised/by Carrie Cort

This film has its own map! The People’s Emergency Briefing is a film based on the National Emergency Briefing’s live talks presented for MPs in Westminster, last November.

The second Horsham screening of the ‘PEB’ film is at Brighton Road Baptist Church on 26th June and the event is being supported by multiple local groups including Transition Horsham, MP Watch Horsham, Horsham Eco Churches and Sussex Green Living. Read more