Sustainability at Ben Holden

Having been an active member of the ‘green’ movement since 1989, Ben has a passionate drive to run the business as ‘environmentally friendly’ as possible.

As testament to this, Ben Holden Ltd became a member of the Suffolk Carbon Charter and has now been awarded Gold level status twice since 2012, through the Suffolk Low Carbon Champions Programme.

In the past, Ben Holden Ltd was involved in many green projects in Suffolk including: conversion and development of sustainable buildings, micro generation of electricity through wind power – installing a 5kW turbine, sustainable office heating using solar thermal panels and an air source heat pump and low energy office lighting.

The most ambitious plan to date commenced in 2012, Ben had a vision for an old agricultural farm (where the original Ben Holden Ltd office stood). Ben worked with the Green Light Trust who put him in touch with The Woodland Trust. Together they worked to secure a grant from the EU for over £50, 000.00 to create a large woodland which would occupy an area of approximately 16 hectares. Whilst Ben planted only a handful of trees, the remainder of them, were hand planted by friends, Jeff, Tony and Mark, mostly in snowy conditions over a four-month period from December 2012 to March 2013.

In 2014 two very large ponds were created at the office, purely for conservation purposes. Around this time it was also estimated that approximately 4% of the new trees had died and so needed re-planting.

Back in 2012, we were assisted by Groundwork East of England to calculate our annual carbon emissions. Based on the emissions of Ben Holden Ltd at the time of planting the large woodland, it was estimated that the woodland would have offset our carbon emissions for more than 1000 years. Obviously the company has grown a lot since then, and we continue to regularly review our emissions. We also continue to be a regular financial contributor to The Woodland Trust and are proud to support this amazing charity with their incredible work!

In late 2013, the company invested in a new cloud based case management system called iinsight and this revolutionised everything. It made the way we manage our work more flexible and efficient. iinsight has also allowed us to abandon all physical client files and we are now paperless. As Ben has always been an early adopter of new technologies, Ben Holden Ltd already had MS Teams in place in 2018, well before the pandemic took hold. Whilst video conferencing can’t totally replace in person visits and meetings, we have been able to further reduce our carbon footprint by having some meetings and sessions online.

EV’s

Ben Holden Ltd now operates a fleet of six fully electric vehicles in the VW, Peugeot, Tesla & Fiat families. When they are charged from the BHL office, they are powered by 100% vegan & renewable energy from Ecotricity.

In 2023, we added a hybrid EV to the fleet, in line with our green policies – this is because, in some circumstances, home charging is not feasible and as such the most efficient HEV will be sourced. Our new HEV is in the Kia family and when fully charged, it can travel around 60 miles in pure EV mode, this still drastically reduces emissions to near zero for all local travel!

Whilst early adoption of this green tech means avoiding long queues at the forecourts, and massive savings on petrol/diesel, it has not been without issues.

There does seem to be adequate charging infrastructure in the UK, however in our current experience, a lot of it appears to be dysfunctional, offline or vandalised! We have found that charging from home/office works well but longer journeys require extra planning regarding charging locations.

Ben Holden Ltd has several policies relating to environmental sustainability and ethical purchasing. If you would like more information about these policies or sustainable activity in general, please contact us.

To demonstrate our commitment to continuous improvement across various domains, we are starting the process of B Corp accreditation.

What do our clients & referrers say?

Before I was supported by Jo Forrest at Ben Holden Ltd, I was struggling with EVERYTHING caused by the RTA. I was incapacitated in a hospital bed in my dining room worried about the traumatic impact on my husband and family, not just following the accident, but the reality of my lack of independence, my ongoing care and my own physical rehabilitation.

Please pass on my thanks to all at Ben Holden for their help and patience with me over the past few years. Things are so much better for me now compared to when I came to you and you have all played a part in that, no matter how small, and I greatly appreciate it. Credit where it’s due in my eyes, and everyone at Ben Holden have been kind, courteous but perhaps more importantly understanding of my difficulties if/when I’ve been confused or remiss in remembering an invoice or some such. It is much appreciated.

Christa came to visit me numerous times in the Royal Free Hospital. Having assessed my needs, she organised repair of my wheelchair, hospital bed on my return home. Organised private physiotherapy and stay in care home. Once home, she came with me to private therapist in Harley Street.

Very kind, understanding and caring.

Before I started working with Ben I was struggling with the everyday tasks e.g. getting myself dressed, walking any distance, lifting, getting in and out of bed, bending. Within six months, Ben and his team enabled me to do all these things and return to work gradually, which resulted in me being able to do my pre-injury job.

My life began to significantly change. Ben treated me with the upmost dignity and respect. He coordinated a team of professionals experienced in working with neurological disorders, especially with people who had experienced an accidental severe traumatic brain injury or through illness. I felt confident that Ben would and did manage to select professionals who he somehow knew would manage my challenging eccentric behaviour and complex needs.

It was very reassuring to know that Ben was always at the end of the phone. He was there when I needed him most. He always responded quickly and kept everybody involved well-informed of what was happening with Progress Reports.

I could trust Ben and felt reassured by his knowledge and patience. He has a great and appropriate sense of humour. I would highly recommend Ben to others who would surely benefit from his expertise.

Ben was very helpful and promptly organised a good local physiotherapist for me. There I was given exercises specific to my problem, along with acupuncture and massage. This was invaluable, as nothing had been offered to id my recovery by my local hospital. In addition, Ben organised a six-month gym membership at my local leisure centre.

I always found Ben easy to talk to and he regularly called to check on my progress. I would not hesitate to recommend Ben Holden td, who gave me a very friendly and professional service.

My experience working with Ben was excellent. I felt very at ease, relaxed and confident with him. If I had any queries or needed extra support, he was always on the end of the telephone. Nothing was ever too much trouble.

I highly recommend Ben Holden, for his professionalism, friendliness and for the individual support I got. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Ben and his team for all their work getting me where I am today, leading a normal life again, and being able to put my accident behind me.

Before Ben Holden started working with me on my injuries, I was struggling daily and unable to progress with my rehabilitation back into normal life. Since Ben Holden Ltd took on my case I have been able to focus on getting my life back together following my accident.

Working with Ben made me feel confident and in control again, his relaxed and easy style made me feel I could talk to him freely about my concerns. I wouldn’t hesitate in recommending Ben Holden Ltd to anyone facing the prospect of life following a life changing accident.

Sustainability at Ben Holden

EV’s

Information for clients and Families

Find out more about us

What do our clients & referrers say?