A Greenprint for Britain

Sustain Britain is creating a roadmap for a sustainable, independent Britain

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Published: June 25, 2025
This Article was written by: Katie Hill - My Green Pod
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This article first appeared in our World Environment Day 2025 issue of My Green Pod Magazine. Click here to subscribe to our digital edition and get each issue delivered straight to your inbox

Main image: Aerial image of the proposed Sustain green food super production centre

Sustain Britain, a new movement created to deliver greater localised sustainability throughout the UK, is moving one step closer to launching its ‘Greenprint for a sustainable, independent Britain’.

Following delegate feedback from its inaugural conference, held in Royal Wootton Bassett last September, the Sustain Britain team has focused on practical ways to build more resilient, self-sufficient local communities nationwide.

A model for communities

The current era of global upheaval and uncertainty, including the way tariffs were elevated overnight by the Trump administration, is underlining the need for a society in which communities and businesses are supported and encouraged to produce more for themselves and their local markets.

Sustain Britain’s aim is to address this need by putting self-reliance and self-sufficiency at the heart of communities across the country, enabling them to become less reliant on international imports and the influence of multinationals.

Due for launch later this summer, its ‘Greenprint’ will create a model that communities throughout Britain can adopt, adapt and implement for their own good.

It will also outline policy changes that both local and national governments need to adopt if we are to realise a more sustainable future for Great Britain.

During the second Sustain Britain Conference, due to take place in Royal Wootton Bassett in September, delegates and sustainability speakers will be invited to discuss and debate the principles of the Greenprint.

This year’s conference will build on last year’s prominent speakers, which included Sir Jonathan Porritt, Roz Savage MP, Thomas Panton and Jarvis Smith.

Local goods & services

One of the driving factors behind the Greenprint is Britain’s over-reliance on foreign goods and resources, which creates vulnerabilities to external shocks such as trade disputes, disruptions, currency fluctuations and global crises.

This leaves Britain open to economic instability and rising living costs.

The aim of the Greenprint is to decouple Britain from this current state of dependency by encouraging and enabling local communities to produce goods and services independently, keeping more wealth within local economies.

To help deliver this future, the Greenprint champions the principle of ‘The Sustain Circle’.

This model encourages communities to produce and source as many goods and raw materials as possible within their local circle, and only ever extend beyond that circle where products, services and resources cannot be accessed.

By promoting self-sufficiency and sustainability, the model aims to strengthen local economies, reduce road transport pollution, drive innovation and prevent wealth from being lost to large corporations that have no interest in the local communities to which they sell.

The Greenprint outlines how supporting local businesses and revitalising domestic industries is crucial to strengthening economies at the local, regional and national level.

This, in turn, requires investment in key sectors such as advanced manufacturing, renewable energy and sustainable consumption.

Here, backing from the government and entrepreneurs will be necessary to drive innovation and reduce environmental impact.

Domestic production

The Greenprint sees Britain’s mineral and natural resource wealth as crucial in realising this future, aiding the development of the country’s high-tech industries while bolstering national security.

Investment, supported by government initiatives designed to stimulate innovation, is seen as key to strengthening Britain’s economic resilience and strategic independence, allowing new and innovative products and technology to be developed and manufactured domestically.

At the micro and macro levels, the Greenprint argues that prioritising quality over consumerism is essential for a more sustainable and less wasteful society.

But it also recognises that if consumers are to purchase locally sourced products on the basis of quality, these need to be competitively priced.

The removal of VAT on 100% domestically produced goods is seen as essential to helping British-made products compete with imports.

Radically, the Greenprint argues that ‘designed-in repair’ should be mandatory, in order to extend product lifespans, reduce waste and ensure goods are made with reuse and recycling in mind.

Sustainable anarchy

Turning its attention to social cohesion, the Greenprint strongly advocates Community Interest Companies (CICs) for their ability to prioritise investments in community-based businesses, projects, education and skills.

The Greenprint also champions the principle of Sustainable Anarchy, a tool to advance sustainable projects that comply with both the law and regulations but which are held back by bureaucracy and red tape.

Instead of waiting for official approval from the authorities, Sustain Britain advocates action so that environmentally or socially beneficial projects can be advanced while archaic approval processes catch up.

In addition to outlining how a more sustainable Britain can be achieved, the Greenprint points to a series of projects that are currently being pioneered, which it hopes communities across Britain will adopt and adapt.

These include Sustain Green Halo Communities, the Sustain Super-Midden and new eco working environments that are designed to supercharge the economies of Sustain Circles across the country.

Green Halo Communities

Sustain Britain’s Green Halo Communities are seen as a practical way of addressing the current housing shortage crisis through the development of sustainable communities on the outskirts of towns, villages and cities.

Utilising long-term land leases, agricultural land would be leased for the construction of affordable, eco-friendly, low-impact rental housing built in new forest by Community Interest Companies.

The housing would be accessed using central transport hubs via a network of paths, cycleways and autonomous vehicles, giving access to town centres, supporting local businesses and breaking the reliance on cars.

Focusing on energy-efficient, autonomous homes with affordable rents – made possible by removing the need for land purchase – the aim of this model is to provide a solution to current housing shortages by allowing permissible, sustainable housing development on agricultural land.

Providing high-quality housing while protecting the environment, this model devalues the worth of existing landbanks being held for development, encouraging the acceleration of home building on this land ahead of the proliferation of future Green Halo Communities.

The Sustain Super-Midden

Currently being pioneered by Sustain Wiltshire and Crapper and Sons Landfill Ltd in Royal Wootton Bassett, the Sustain Super-Midden is a prime example of new technology that has the potential to create a more sustainable future for all under the Sustain Circle model.

This technology uses methane from landfill sites to create energy, which is used to heat and provide UV light to positively pressured, flexible greenhouses, alongside CO2 for photosynthesis.

Enhancing growing conditions, this process enables the production of affordable, organic fruit and vegetables year-round for local communities, and is set to be trialled following the arrival of the first prototype greenhouse later this year.

The Super-Midden enables communities to have access to fresh, locally sourced, affordable food, blending traditional and modern solutions to reclaim control of the wider food supply chain.

By revitalising agriculture, using this approach alongside other innovative farming practices, Britain stands its best chance of building resilient food systems for the future, ensuring long-term food security and sovereignty.

Replicated and scaled nationally, Sustain Super-Middens have the potential to prevent over 2 million tonnes of CO2 from entering the atmosphere annually, while delivering sustainable, just-in-time production that delivers fresh food at a lower cost than supermarkets.

With the advent of Solid Waste Anaerobic Treatment Cells (SWATC) – which are set to be pioneered by the Sustain Wiltshire Operations CIC later this year – gas from solid waste will add to the power from electricity-generating engines on site, while preventing even more CO2 emissions.

When oil production stops and virgin plastics are no longer available, the Super-Midden will be a valuable source of polymers for future plastic production, and will help create a future where we can maximise today’s waste for tomorrow.

Eco working environments

As part of the Sustain Super-Midden model, Sustain Wiltshire is currently evolving the development of sustainable, grazeable subterranean workspaces that will be connected to the Sustain Super-Midden.

The Super-Midden will provide businesses with affordable heat and energy, reducing energy bills and boosting their competitiveness and growth.

Modular in form, these eco-working business units will create an environment that fosters collaboration among local businesses, increasing innovation and job creation, supercharging the local economy and enhancing the power of the Sustain Circle.

All this within cutting-edge dome structures covered by 1.5 metres of soil that adds insulation, prevents water run-off and allows for grazing, blending the units with the rural environment.

Together, these three symbiotic solutions provide housing, food, jobs and a sustainable future for their communities, demonstrating how the first level of the Sustain Circle can be achieved and repeated across the country, alongside a wider commitment by communities and businesses to focus on producing and consuming more locally.