Event organisers invited to free green workshop

Organisers of festivals and events across Reading are being invited to a free workshop where they can find out how to make their events greener and more sustainable.

The Council took part in the national pilot of the Green Events Code of Practice (GECoP) last year and has now been invited to take part in phase two.

The workshop at the Civic Centre on Tuesday 3 February will give a wider range of local event organisers the chance to hear about lessons learned from the initial pilot and to find out how they can be involved in the next phase.

Reading was one of 10 local councils to take part in the GECoP pilot which aimed to help develop national guidance on sustainability for event organisers.

The trial involved Reading Festival, East Reading Festival, Readipop, Reading Pride and Reading Economic Development Agency (REDA) as well as the Council’s own events, including Water Fest.

Organisers trialled the Donut Advisory Tool for Events (DATE) to focus on ways of making environmental improvements to areas such as energy use, food and drink, waste and travel and transport.

Measures taken by local event organisers included providing recycling and food waste bins on site; offering water filling stations to reduce the use of plastic bottles; reducing the use of diesel generators; using local suppliers and contractors where possible and requiring caterers to find alternatives to single-use plastics.

Watch our video highlighting some of the actions taken at the 2025 Reading Festival:  https://youtu.be/qFtB28oKlZE 

Phase two of the project, supported by the University of Reading, will build on progress so far by expanding the number of local events using the GECoP toolkit, aligning sustainability guidance for events across the borough, developing a roadmap towards a net-zero events sector and celebrating the achievements of Reading’s festival and event organisers.

Cllr John Ennis, Lead Councillor for Climate Strategy and Transport, said:

“Feedback from the initial Green Events Code of Practice pilot was that organisers of events of all sizes in Reading learned a lot from working together towards more sustainable practices.

“I am really pleased that Reading has been invited to take part in phase two of the project and now has the opportunity to share the lessons learned with a wider range of festival and event organisers in the borough.

“The workshop in February will be a great opportunity to hear about the experiences of the people behind events ranging from Reading Festival to East Reading Festival and find out how to get involved in this next exciting phase.

“Reading has a brilliant range of festivals and events every year and bringing everyone together to make them greener and more sustainable is an important contribution to the borough’s aim of becoming net zero.”

Aleiah Potter, Head of Events at the University of Reading, said:

“As a university committed to sustainability, we see events as powerful opportunities for positive change.

“Working with partner organisations and industry leaders, we are honoured to contribute to the development of the Green Events Code of Practice.

“Together, we hope that sharing effective strategies will equip festival organisers with practical tools that embed sustainable practices into the heart of every event.”

The Council and University of Reading is hosting the GECoP workshop, with support from Reading Festival organisers, Festival Republic, in the Civic Centre in Bridge Street, Reading, on Tuesday 3 February.

Reading event organisers wishing to attend the free workshop can book their place at: https://forms.gle/Q28QFcy3K9i3AFt3A.

For more information about the Green Events Code of Practice and the DATE tool, visit: www.visionsustainableevents.org.