Local churches are focusing on all things eco in an effort to protect our planet.

The Church of England has challenged all of its churches to reach Net Zero by 2030.

Grasmoor Mission Community (GMC), which covers 15 churches in the Cockermouth area, has set its sights on achieving the A Rocha UK Eco award for all of them.

Leading the way is St Cuthbert's Church in Lorton, one of only 28 churches in the UK to gain the gold Eco award.

Earlier in the year, the GMC had a Community Gathering Day on the theme of Towards Net Zero, exploring how to turn their goal of Net Zero by 2030 into a reality.

The churches were joined by speaker Lee Jackson, commercial director of Smart Carbon, a carbon emissions reporting consultancy.

Representatives for Cumbria Wildlife Trust provided tips on gardening and GMC leader Jane Charman led a workshop on bringing environmentalism into worship.

Rosemary Riley, from St Cuthbert’s, Lorton, spoke about Eco Church and ran a workshop on community and global engagement.

The Eco Church award measures the carbon footprints of all church activities and judges them on five categories.

• Worship and Teaching

• Management of Church Buildings (if applicable)

• Management of Church Land (if applicable)

• Community and Global Engagement

• Lifestyle

Currently, five GMC churches out of 15 have received an award, with many more churches following their leadership and submitting applications.

Brigham Methodist, Christ Church Cockermouth, All Saint’s Cockermouth, and St Bartholomew’s Loweswater have all achieved the bronze award.

A Christ Church spokesman said: "We have a big mountain to climb but climb it we must for the sake of the planet that our loving God created."

The eco theme continued at the recent Loweswater Show where the GMC had an eco-themed tent.

"Sharing eco tips and creating a space for prayer, GMC members and members of local churches came together to spread their love for environmentalism and to demonstrate the efforts of their congregations in protecting God's earth," said a GMC spokesman.

Many creative eco-friendly activities have been led by the GMC churches, each one improving the long-term carbon footprint of the church.

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