Norwich has been portrayed as a peculiarly provincial place since well before Alan Partridge stepped out of his Lexus, and it continues to be so, long after his passing. Former Norwich City goalkeeper Robert Green recently dubbed it “a city the size of a town with a village mentality”.
But Norfolk’s capital may have quietly overtaken flashier parts of Britain in one important way. It has just been named the country’s greenest community, boasting the highest concentration of eco-friendly businesses in the nation, according to a survey by online listings people Locallife.co.uk. Norwich beat more widely feted green hotspots such as Brighton and Totnes in an analysis of farm shops, organic foods, charity shops, recycling, asbestos removal services and double-glazing firms.
Norwich is a pleasant place with an attractive medieval centre, and out of all Britain’s cities has one of highest ratios of green space per resident. But how environmentally friendly is it? And how has it gone green?
Shoppers in the Green Grocers, a smart organic supermarket wedged between charity shops in the city suburbs, have no doubt that the Green party has played a major part. “We’ve got the biggest [local] Green party and I think that’s what has made things change around here,” says Julie Dean, an optometrist, who is on her way to donate belongings to a charity shop.
The May elections gave Norwich city council nine Green councillors, more than on any other council in the country. Although it is controlled by a minority Labour group, the Greens hold the balance of power and claim to have helped improve recycling, designate Norwich an official fair-trade city, find funding for a cycling officer to improve cycle routes, and block cuts to rural railway finances.
Local businesses have seen changes, too. In two years, the Green Grocers has trebled in size, with annual growth ahead of the 20-30% seen in the buoyant organic market. “It either suggests Norwich people are more green and have taken an organic approach to heart or there is a gap in the market,” says owner Ben Binns. Blackboards show which vegetables are in season; the shop sells organic and bio- dynamic fruits from Norfolk farms; a customer loyalty card gives 1% of profits back to local charities. “We’re trying to play the Tesco game but with ethics,” says Binns, who also ensures the shop is carbon neutral by calculating and offsetting the food miles of all his stock.
Green businesses appear to have reached a critical mass in Norwich. Residents can find a local, eco-friendly version of almost anything, from Living Clean, an environmentally friendly cleaners that devises its own cleaning products, to