FAQs

The Club published a Sustainability Statement on our website and has partnered with Green Tourism since 2019 to provide a framework and baseline to work from. The Club continues to focus on areas which are highlighted and where we can make a real difference and improvement.

Green Tourism are renowned and trusted eco experts who provide guidance on greener ways of operating as well as offering advice to businesses on how to be more sustainable and socially responsible. You can read more about Green Tourism and the guidance they give to us on our dedicated Green Tourism page.

Green Tourism uses an assessment framework that looks at the 3 key pillars of People, Planet and Places and breaks these down further to explore areas such as Biodiversity, Diversity and Inclusion and Destinations to grade each site.

All Club campsites have been graded either a Silver or Gold and will display this at reception. East Grinstead offices, Cayton Village, Lady Margaret’s Park and Rowan Park received a Gold accreditation and the rest of the network received Silver. The Club has an action plan to improve further in 2024. To find out more visit our dedicated Green Tourism page.

Currently the assessment framework is only being used for Club owned and managed sites however some of the key learnings and actions will form part of our best practice and can be shared with Affiliated Sites and CLs, while a number of our overseas campsites work within frameworks in their destination countries.

The Club has been using renewable energy for a number of years and it is now Club standard for all new site developments to install Solar PV where suitable, along with air source heat pumps. We have also trialled over the years Solar Thermal, grey water harvesting, rain water harvesting. ground source heat pumps and wind turbines and continue to review these as potential standards for the future, however each has presented some challenges to date in our Club campsite environment that need to be understood further. Find out more from our renewable energy article.

The Club is currently trialling a smart metering solution at Wyatts Covert Club Campsite, Denham. This will mean each pitch will be metered and members will pay for the electricity they use. The trial is already showing a marked reduction in electricity usage saving some members money, however we are looking to simplify the member experience before we roll it out to more sites in the future.

An off grid saver trial is also planned for 3 sites over the winter months allowing members at Clumber Park, Burrs Country Park and Chatsworth to book any pitch and receive a discount for going off-grid. If this is successful it  may be rolled out more widely in 2024.

The Club will continue to encourage all members and staff to be mindful of their electricity usage with useful hints and tips on site. Read our recent news article.

All Club campsites have biodiversity areas and the majority have 'no-mow' locations to improve the wildlife, encourage wild grasses and flowers. We also have the Chairman's Sustainability Award every year, where sites which carry out sustainable initiatives send in photos and a statement of what they are doing and the Chairman chooses the one he feels is doing the most toward our sustainability goals.

Find out more about Biodiversity on Club campsites.

The Club is actively installing Solar PV onto facility block roofs when we carry out major development or when it makes sense to do so. Currently we have 12 sites with Solar PV but this number continues to rise. 

We have recently installed a larger array of solar at our Brighton site and once we have analysed the performance we hope to do a wider roll out to more sites. 

Our needs for Solar are complex due to the peaks and troughs of energy usage. Most of our energy usage is in the morning or evening while the energy is generated during the day when our members are out and about. Due to this we need to optimise the solutions to ensure we can store enough energy and sites can use it when needed. 

We are also currently designing a solution for Hillhead which is different to many of our sites due to the large entertainment complex with bar, shop, restaurant and swimming pool.

Waste, recycling and composting can be complex. The Club works though our waste management provider and within the local authority guidelines which varies from site to site, however to keep things simple we offer the same waste and recycling processes to our members across the network with the variance in how it is picked up and processed.Please look at the recycling posters on site to ensure you put the right items in the right bins as this may differ from site to site and also from home. We do ask that you don't leave large items for our sites to dispose of and take them home and recycle where possible.

In 2022, our diversion to landfill rate was 97.2% meaning only 2.8% of the waste generated on our sites ended up in landfill

Composting is further complicated and we have to consider the environment around us and any impact that may have on our members' stay, it's an area we will review on site and with our waste partners to understand what more can be done safely. It’s easier managed on a single household basis rather than multiple visitors to site

The Club has a new Sustainability Hub on the website which we intend to create some useful content across the year, letting you know what we are doing.

We also have a quarterly column called Sustainability Matters in the Club magazine and will use social media and email to let you know of key initiatives.

You can email the Club on sustainability@camc.com. Please do not use this mail box for general Club enquiries or anything urgent and allow up to 28 days for response.