FAQs
FAQs
General
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Flying is the most polluting thing an individual will do in their life, and in 2018, Brits took more flights than any other nationality.
For the UK to lead on avoiding the worst effects of climate change, we must get a grip on flying.
With technological solutions out of reach for decades to come, that means reducing the amount we fly.
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Unfortunately ‘offsetting’ is not a solution to climate change. Offsetting involves paying for an action or service elsewhere that, in theory, removes the same amount of carbon from the atmosphere as is released from an activity, such as a flight.
There are many practical issues involved that make it very hard to say whether carbon has truly been removed from the atmosphere - and in what timeframe - as a result of the offsetting payment.
Most importantly, however, global carbon emissions need to start falling rapidly to avoid climate breakdown. Offsetting, by definition, does not reduce emissions. To reduce emissions we need both technological and behavioural change. But offsetting works against behavioural change by allowing existing, high carbon, behaviours to prevail - along with the industries that enable them.
For more information about the pitfalls of carbon offsetting, see this article by Possible’s former Director of Campaigns, Max Wakefield.
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Six years’ worth of data from over 150 employers shows that the average amount of time claimed for sustainable travel equates to just three minutes per employee per month.
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Nothing!
We’re a grant-funded charity and our full service - including policy templates, employee procedure docs, and ongoing support for your HR team - is offered to you free of charge.
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No. Our full service (as outlined here) is offered free of charge - including official accreditation.
For employees
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There are a host of websites and organisations ready to help staff plan and book journeys by land or sea. Check out this section of the STL Portal for ideas.
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Look at your workplace’s Sustainable Travel Leave policy.
If you’re using STL for leisure travel, your policy covers the difference in time between flights and overland travel. So you need to calculate how long it would take to travel by plane (including two hours’ check-in time each way), how long it will take using your chosen overland travel method (including check-in time each way), and then the difference between those two travel methods. That’s the amount you can claim as journey time. Sites like RouteZero can help you calculate this difference.
If you’re using STL for business travel, you can claim half of the time difference between flight-free travel and flying.
For more information and an example, see here.
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For the purposes of STL, sustainable holiday travel means travel by land or sea that has a significantly reduced environmental impact compared to journeys to the same destination by plane.
According to our latest policy template, qualifying travel includes journeys by bus, train, ferry, coach, electric vehicles, and journeys in petrol and diesel cars where there are three or more people in the vehicle. It does not include petrol or diesel car journeys with fewer than three passengers, nor does it include road-trips with campervans or caravans. It also does not include holidays which are journeys in themselves, e.g. long-distance cycle rides, cruises or walks - unless travel is required to or from start and end points.
Check your organisation’s policy for more details.
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Some car journeys are eligible.
Qualifying journeys include journeys made by private or hired electric vehicles, or journeys in petrol and diesel cars where there are three or more people in the vehicle. STL does not cover single or dual passenger journeys in petrol or diesel cars, as these often have similar emissions levels to flying.
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We recognise that some people live in areas where it is hard to get to the nearest transport hub without driving. Therefore, for the purposes of this scheme, a “journey” should be considered the travel from the nearest city or major transport hub, to your destination city or transport hub, rather than from door to door.
As an example, if you were travelling from rural Yorkshire to Paris, you would calculate the difference in flying from Leeds to Paris and getting the train from Leeds to Paris and claim that as STL. Car travel from your home to the station or airport would not be included in your calculation.
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Please ask them to get in touch with us and we can support them to approach their employer with a compelling, tailored business case specific to their workplace.
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Yes - but only if it’s a journey that reasonably would have been taken by plane.
Example 1: Many people choose to fly from Bristol to Edinburgh, so this journey would qualify.
Example 2: Going from London to Manchester is not a journey that would have reasonably been taken by plane, so this journey would not qualify.
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Yes, but you are strongly encouraged to choose flight-free travel for both legs of the journey.
If you need help planning your ravel, please get in touch.
For employers
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Most employers choose to offer travel time to part-time employees on a pro-rata basis. Check your organisation’s policy for more details.
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There are lots of ways to encourage greater uptake of the scheme. Some ideas include:
Spread the word: Remind staff through internal forums, emails, Slack channels, team meetings and staff newsletters. Make sure STL is covered in your staff handbook and on recruitment materials so new employees are aware of the scheme.
Use these resources: There are resources here to help you spread the word.
Offer financial support: Some STL employers offer a bursary to cover the difference in cost between flights and overland travel.
Run a team session: Accredited employers members with 100+ employees can request that we run a session for your teams about STL, how it works, and about the other benefits. We will also consider requests from smaller organisations, although this will be dependent on our capacity. Get in touch to find a time.
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We want STL to remain as simple and low-cost as possible for employers to implement, whilst also being able to demonstrate the impact of the scheme.
As an accredited employer, each year we will ask you to tell us:
How many employees used the scheme.
How many journeys were taken.
How many STL days were claimed.
With further optional reporting including:
Which destinations were travelled to.
Which modes of transport were substituted for plane travel.
Demographic characteristics of employees using the scheme.
Using information you provide, we will provide you with reports to demonstrate the estimated emissions savings of implementing STL at your organisation.
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STL is run by climate charity Possible.
We’re on a mission to speed up action on climate change. Our work cuts carbon, but because we work on a cultural level as well as technical ones, we build infectious projects which get people talking.
It is always more than just a solar panel here, or an LED there: it’s groups of people working to change the world.
Our charity number is 1157363 and you can find out more about our work at wearepossible.org.
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No. Paid travel time is not the same as annual leave because it can only be used to travel, not for leisure time.
Whether an employee has flown to a destination or taken advantage of STL to travel by land or sea, they will have exactly the same number of annual leave days remaining after their holiday.
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Because employers offer a limited amount of paid Sustainable Travel Leave - not additional annual leave days - all employees are entitled to the same amount of annual leave, however they travel.
Paid travel time can only be used to enable longer, lower carbon, trips by land or sea. The scheme recognises that it is more time-consuming, and often more arduous, to travel over land or sea, and so it offers Sustainable Travel Leave (STL) in exchange.
STL is designed to enable low-carbon travel choices for as many people as possible, rather than act as a reward for certain staff.
Due to the different lifestyles, responsibilities and locations of staff members, it will be easier for some to make use of STL than others. Staff that are less able to use journey days will have no less access to paid leisure time: they can spend the same amount of time on annual leave, but with less travel time required.
Employers often offer a range of employee perks - from gym memberships to childcare vouchers - that are not applicable or attractive to every employee, with employees choosing benefits that suit them best. STL is a novel and timely addition to this offer for participating employers.
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As an accredited employer, you can request an annual breakdown of your estimated carbon saved through adopting STL, as well as template text to be put into your sustainability report.
Get in touch with us to request this.
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✓ Ongoing support for HR
✓ Accreditation
✓ Annual impact report
✓ Press and media coverage
✓ Organisational discountsAnd employees/volunteers can access:
✓ One-to-one support for planning flight-free holidays
✓ Exclusive discounts
✓ A monthly newsletter
✓ Invitations to private events.
✓ Access to the STL Portal