UK's green energy and sustainability success stories this week.

A new 30 MW / 60 MWh battery storage site began operating in Lancashire, and the UK's first rapid-charging battery passenger train entered service on a west London branch line.

Five positive sustainability developments were reported across the UK last week. They cover energy, resources, mobility, the built environment and sustainability leadership. The items are presented as practical examples of projects moving from planning and trial phases into operation. They reflect actions by businesses and organisations working to deliver long-term sustainability goals. Key developments: - Pulse Clean Energy brought a 30 MW / 60 MWh battery energy storage system called Town Lane into operation in Charnock Richard, Chorley, Lancashire. The grid-scale site, built on a former scrapyard, offers two hours of duration and is described as able to supply the equivalent of more than 65,000 homes for one hour; the company said the project is expected to avoid about 2,500 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually and removed more than 500 tonnes of hazardous material during construction. - Reconome and the Good Things Foundation committed to supplying 85,000 refurbished digital devices to people facing digital exclusion across the UK by June 2029. Devices will be distributed via the National Device Bank with Reconome as exclusive technology partner; the charity reports that since April 2022 it has expanded its network of hubs and distributed 28,992 devices, with further household and community sharing affecting a further 33,112 people. - Great Western Railway began running the UK's first rapid-charging battery passenger train on the West Ealing to Greenford branch. The converted train can carry up to 273 passengers and recharges in about three and a half minutes at West Ealing using a 2,000 kW charger; trials reported the unit travelled more than 200 miles on a single charge. - urbanest's Battersea student accommodation received WELL Residence certification from the International WELL Building Institute, described as the first purpose-built student accommodation in the UK to achieve that residential WELL standard. The scheme also holds Passivhaus and BREEAM Outstanding certifications and is noted as the UK's tallest Passivhaus certified building. - Too Good To Go and Ceva Logistics reported redistributing 300,000 parcels of surplus food in the UK since the parcels initiative launched in October 2024. Parcels have been supplied by a range of brands and are delivered through the app-based service and logistics partnership. Summary: These five items show a series of operational milestones across the campaign's five pillars, with some projects reporting specific targets or commitments such as Pulse Clean Energy's UK capacity goal and Reconome's device delivery pledge. Several initiatives are now running in public-facing modes — for example the battery train is carrying passengers and the food parcels programme has reached a quantified redistribution milestone. Undetermined at this time.