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• Environment Centre is blueprint for eco-building with style

• Date:

  28th May 2008

• Contact:

  Sarah Egerton

• Organisation:

  The Civic Trust

Situated between the towns of Oadby and Wigston in Leicestershire, Brocks Hill Country Park and Environment Centre inspires sustainable living with a ground-breaking eco-building which exhibits sustainable building principles and renewable energy technology.

The eco-visitors centre houses an exhibition, a cafe, a shop, toilets and also a meeting room which is available for hire. The centre and park were opened in April 2001.  The project received £939,000 funding from the Millennium Commission and match funding from various partners including De Montfort University and Leicestershire County Council.  This green wedge between Oadby and Wigston has now been protected from housing development.

The centre’s roof is covered in tiles reclaimed from demolished buildings and recycled newspaper has been used as insulation in the roofspace above the ceiling. The south facing roof houses an array of photovoltaic panels and solar air heaters. These provide both electricity and hot air heating and are the first of their kind to be supplied in the UK. The conservatory uses a ‘passive solar’ design which brings the sun’s heat and light deep into the building. Tiled floors and exposed brickwork absorb heat and release it again after the sun has gone in, keeping the building warm. Triple glazed windows prevent heat loss – they are coated to reflect heat back into the building. The northern side of the building is further insulated by an earth bank.

Heat gained from photovoltaic panels and solar tubes is transferred to a large insulated hot water storage tank which acts like a ‘heat battery,’ making the centre extremely energy efficient. Fresh air is pulled in from outside by a unit which uses the tank to warm it before it is blown through the building. When the exhaust air is pulled out of the building the heat is recovered from it to pre-warm the incoming fresh air. Louvred openings in the walls allow the building to be cooled in summer by ventilating it at night. An automated dual fuel boiler, which runs on oil or wood chips, is used to top-up the heat store if required.

Wide gutters and downpipes harvest rainwater from the roof which is then stored in a large underground tank before being filtered, sterilized and used for flushing toilets. Toilet waste goes to an on-site treatment tank where it is broken down and the liquid waste safely dispersed into the ground.

Electricity produced from the photovoltaic panels is converted for use within the building or exported to the national grid if surplus to requirements. A wind turbine situated at the southern end of the park also provides extra energy for use within the building.

Low energy light fittings have been used throughout the building. All appliances in the kitchen and café have been selected for their low energy usage and.biodegradable soap and re-cycled and unbleached hand towels are used in the toilets.

Talks and guided tours of the building are regularly organised for groups and individuals. To be notified of the date of an organised tour, please telephone 0116 257 2888 or email to

Ranger John Bristow said: “The Environment Centre is a flagship example of how modern sustainable building principles can be applied in order to reduce our impact upon the Earth.  It also acts as a focal point for the Park, providing a stage to promote sustainable living and environmental awareness to our visitors.  My hope is that the resource at Brocks Hill will inspire people to embrace a more sustainable way of living for the benefit of us today and generations to come.”