Reshaping Regional Clean Air Leadership

This is a practical, evidence-based report for combined, strategic and local authorities delivering clean air in England. It maps the powers authorities already hold and where they are under-used, proposes a tested governance model for regional clean air leadership, and provides ready-to-use tools and checklists.

The air we breathe today is cleaner than at any point since the industrial revolution: the product of political will, sustained local action and decades of determined effort. Seventy years on from the UK's first Clean Air Act, our new report reveals the scale of what local clean air action has already achieved, and the cost of not going further. From ULEZ to HEPA filters in classrooms, councils and combined authorities are saving lives and creating economic value. The evidence is clear: with the right governance, powers and funding, regional leadership can deliver far more.

Real Impact, Real Communities

Greater Manchester's Bee Network

Bringing buses back under public control has made Greater Manchester one of England's most advanced examples of integrated clean air governance. Franchising means cleaner vehicles can be required, not just encouraged, with air quality standards written directly into contracts.

• ✅ Electric fleet up from under 1% to around 20% since franchising
• ✅ Punctuality improved from 66% to over 80%
• ✅ Over 700 million walking and cycling trips in 2025

Hertfordshire's Schools Ventilation Programme

Hertfordshire has installed HEPA filter units in every classroom across 63 primary schools, prioritising those near busy roads and in areas of higher deprivation. The result: cleaner air for tens of thousands of children in the places they spend their days.

• ✅ ~30% PM2.5 reduction in monitored classrooms
• ✅ 30,000+ children benefiting
• ✅ 400+ teaching staff breathing cleaner air

Oxford's Zero Emission Zone

Oxford's pioneering ZEZ rewards zero emission vehicles rather than simply penalising older ones. Designed alongside planning and transport policy, with a 100% discount for qualifying low-income households, it shows how equity can be built in from the start.

• ✅ 28% reduction in vehicle movements in the first year
• ✅ Air pollution around 15% lower in the zone than citywide
• ✅ 100% daily charge discount for low-income households
• ✅ A joint city-county protocol aligning planning and highway powers

A New Model for Regional Leadership

No single tier of government holds the powers to deliver clean air alone, and no existing governance model is sufficient on its own. The report proposes a new model which is a seven-layer governance framework that enables strategic authorities to embed clean air across policy areas, built around four outcomes: cleaner air, health equity, clean growth and capability.

The Time to Act is Now

The progress of the past decade shows what's possible. The task of the next is to make that progress universal, durable and just. Download the full report to explore the powers, governance models and tools your authority can use today.

This report was made possible with support from: