Community energy groups recruited in Warm Streets campaign
Community energy groups recruited in Warm Streets campaign
Innovative pilot to invest in grassroots projects
2 July 2009
An innovative pilot scheme has been launched by CSE, aiming to spread the Warm Streets message.
The Warm Streets Community Reward Pilot project will be investing in a number of grassroots community energy projects from across the region. These projects – which have strong links with their communities – will then be referring households in their area to CSE’s Warm Streets scheme for insulation measures, helping their communities to make CO2 emission reductions.
The groups taking part in the project are:
• Transition Town Langport
• Target 80 CIC (which includes 11 villages in Chew Valley)
• Forum 21
• Mendip Energy Volunteers (part of Mendip Environment CIC)
• Pill and Community Warm Streets
• Taunton Transition Town
• Axevale Consortium for Energy (which involves Wedmore Green Group, Transition Winscombe and Sanford, Sustainable Axbridge Network, Shipham, Cheddar and Draycott)
Two different reward schemes will be modelled by the pilot with some groups receiving cash in return for the CO2 savings per measure installed as a result of their referral. They intend to invest this money in a range of schemes from training volunteers to do home energy audits to establishing a community chest for sustainable energy projects.
Meanwhile, other groups will receive CSE expertise and support in the form of staff time for referrals they make to the scheme. The type of support they will access may include: feasibility studies for a community micro hydro-electricity scheme or developing a community Carbon Reduction Action Plan. This way, all support and money that groups receive will be re-invested back into community energy activities.
The groups will be supported by Lucy Lloyd-Price, CSE’s Community Project Manager, who will facilitate action planning sessions, signpost them to support, help organise events, train them to recognise ‘treatable houses’ and maximise referrals.
Lucy said about the scheme: “This pilot will test out a new way of working with local voluntary groups – where they help us get insulation measures installed and we help them with other energy initiatives in their communities. It’s a ‘win-win’ arrangement which makes the most of what the groups and CSE can offer. We hope it will prove successful so we can roll it out to many more groups across the area.”
It is planned for a Community Energy Forum to be held later this year in October 2009, which will be an opportunity to share knowledge and experience for all community energy groups in the region (Bath and North East Somerset, North Somerset and Somerset), not just those participating in the pilot.