New data ranks Nottinghamshire as the third least eco-minded county in England

According to the Office of National Statistics, between October and December 2023, the UK released 133 million tonnes of emissions into the atmosphere. This and the emissions before and following are leading us to see unusual weather patterns. Which is why the environment needs to be on our minds more than ever.

Household Quotes conducted research in order to rank each English county based on how eco-minded it is. To do this they used common eco-terms and calculated the total search volumes in each county.

Full study: https://householdquotes.co.uk/blog/eco-minded-english-counties

1. Leicestershire

Leicestershire, located in the centre of England and contains many large settlements. These include; Leicester, Loughborough, Hinckley, Market Harborough and Melton Mowbray. It has been ranked as the least eco-minded English county in this study. Despite its relatively large population of just under 1.1 million, it only had an average search volume of 1,770 per month over the past twelve months.

2. Gloucestershire

It might be surprising to some that Gloucestershire ranked second in our study. This is because the county is home to the world's most eco-friendly football club, Forest Green Rovers who play in Nailsworth, near Stroud. If you’ve ever used the M5, you might also have made a stop at Gloucester Service Station, which has a grass bank over the top of it and a farm shop selling local produce. However, Gloucestershire only averaged 1,820 searches a month over the past year, resulting in it appearing on this list.

3. Nottinghamshire

Nottinghamshire is a county notorious for the tales of Robin Hood, stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. However, it ranked as the third least eco-minded county in England in this study, having an average search of 2,510 per month. This compared with Nottinghamshire’s high population of over 1.15 million, is why it is featured here.

4. Berkshire

Known as the ‘royal county’, Berkshire sits just west of London. It also sits as the fourth least eco-minded English county in this study. The county is home to Reading, Slough, Bracknell, Newbury and Windsor and has a population of around 950,000. Out of that population, there are only an average of 2,180 searches a month when it comes to solar panels, insulation, double-glazing and heat pumps.

5. Rutland

Rutland is England’s least populated county, with a population of just over 41,000. It’s located just east of Leicestershire, and its county town is the market town of Oakham. However, it still ranked as one of the least eco-minded counties in England, despite its low-population.

Joshua Houston, Environmental Expert at Household Quotes:

‘’It’s important that we all keep the environment in mind as we go about our everyday lives. We should look for ways that we can be more eco-friendly, whether that’s a big investment like solar panels, or simply installing a smart meter.

What you’ll often find is that being eco-minded will also save you money in the long run. Given circumstances around the cost of living, we could all do with that.’’