‘It’s Better OFF’ this Christmas: Reducing energy costs over the Christmas break

A title reading 'The big Christmas switch off' with rows of red stars in the background.

The continuing high energy costs, combined with the University Strategy and global carbon reduction targets to reduce the impact of climate change, have meant there has never been a more important time to consider how we use energy at Loughborough.

You may not know this, but even when the University is closed, there are still significant costs required to keep the campus running. For example, in 2024, over the Christmas holiday break, the University used almost one million kWh of electricity, which costs approximately £277,000. That’s the annual electricity consumption of 300 average UK homes.

Our Facilities Management teams will be working hard to ensure that we can save as much energy as possible during this time by isolating the heating and ventilation services to buildings that will be unoccupied during the holiday period. However, we can all do our bit to help reduce these energy costs by switching off unnecessary equipment and lighting over the Christmas period.

So far in 2025, the University has consumed on average £28,000 of electricity and £12,500 of gas every single day

This year, the University is looking to reduce electricity consumption by at least 5% over the Christmas break, which would save nearly £7,000 and over six tonnes of carbon over the nine day Christmas Break.

Here are some tips on the ways you can reduce consumption within your office or building during this time:

  • Ensure your PC or laptop and monitor are switched off – equipment like USB hubs and docking stations should also be unplugged
  • Ensure windows are shut to keep buildings secure and maintain the temperature
    Unplug any phones or chargers
  • Turn off all the lights before leaving
  • Switch off all air con units, kitchen and bathroom extractor fans and heaters
  • Switch off standalone printers (except MFDs, which must remain on to prevent losing settings)
  • Turn off research equipment that does not need to be used over the break
  • Be sure to check what technical equipment can and can’t be switched off with a technician or the user so as not to hinder any research.

Some of these tips may even prove to be useful reminders for your home office too. Remember, do not switch off any equipment that is in use for vital experiments, research or local fridges and freezers.

And most importantly, remember to take a break for yourself and switch off from work over the Christmas break.

When returning to the office after the Christmas break, you might find it is a little cooler than normal, so remember to bring a warm jumper. Check out this blog about how you can keep warm whilst looking after the environment by choosing sustainable fabrics.