Croydon has dramatically reduced its carbon footprint from street lighting, achieving a 65% decrease in CO2 emissions since 2016, according to a report presented at the Croydon & Lewisham Street Lighting Joint Committee meeting on Tuesday. The figures highlight the success of energy-efficient measures and variable lighting policies implemented across the borough.
According to the Joint Street Lighting PFI Update report, Croydon's streetlight emissions have fallen from 4,404 tonnes of CO2 in 2016/17 to 1,553 tonnes in 2024/25. Lewisham has also seen a significant reduction, with emissions decreasing from 2,839 tonnes to 936 tonnes over the same period. In Lewisham, street lighting equates to just over 7% of the council's scope 1 and 2 emissions from sources owned and managed by the council in 2022/23.
The report credits the introduction of variable lighting level policies in both boroughs for contributing to the reduction. These policies allow councils to dim or brighten streetlights flexibly, cutting energy consumption, electricity costs and associated CO2 emissions. This is achieved through the Central Management System (CMS). The CMS functionality also helps manage the total annual consumption through implementation of both boroughs' variant lighting level policies.
Lewisham introduced their variant lighting level policy in November 2016 which received Mayor and Cabinet approval. Croydon introduced their Street Lighting Policy in February 2023. Both boroughs have received minimal enquiries regarding their variant lighting level policies, and carry out lighting level checks to ensure roads are compliant if any safety concerns are raised. On a few occasions in Lewisham, the dimming profile has been raised back upto 100% functionality to alleviate any safety fears.
The report also noted that no complaints have been received from residents or stakeholders regarding the variable lighting policies.
During the meeting, John Algar, Street Lighting Manager, presented the report, highlighting the service provider's overperformance between September 2024 and August 2025. He noted the completion of the Core Investment Programme (CIP) in 2016 and the effectiveness of the Central Management System (CMS) in identifying and addressing lighting faults.
Looking ahead, Croydon Council has declared a 'Climate Emergency' and has set a target to be carbon neutral by 2030. Achieving this target will require securing additional zero carbon electricity through its contracts.