Training in Bristol & Somerset

CSE has launched a series of free* training events aimed at equipping community groups across Somerset and the former Avon area with the information and knowledge to launch their own energy project.

Forthcoming events will appear on this page and be updated as new courses are scheduled. To attend, you must register with CSE beforehand.

(Because so many groups are currently busy with Local Emergy Assessment Fund bids, we have decided to move back the following training)

Saturday, 31 March 2012, 10:00 to 14:30  |  Glastonbury Town Hall, Magdalene Street, Glastonbury
Funding and finances for your community energy project
This session will introduce a range of different funding options, from grants and donations to share issues and bank loans. It will help you to identify the most suitable sources of funding based on the size and scope of your project, and will look at techniques you can use within your group to plan your fund raising realistically. The session will also explain how the feed-in tariff and the renewable heat premium payment can generate income streams from renewable energy projects that can be re-invested in other initiatives. Download the booking form here.

Saturday, 19 May 2012, 10:30 to 13:30  |  Friends Meeting House, Bath Place, High Street, Taunton
Planning and permissions for energy projects
Whatever your project, there are parts of the planning system you can influence or that you need to engage with – whether it’s getting low carbon issues into local development plans, understanding the new localism bill, or seeking planning permission. This course will explain recent changes to the planning system, the policies and plans you should be influencing, and key planning permissions and licenses required for low carbon developments. Download the booking form here.

* These training sessions are offered free to members of community energy groups in the Bristol and Somerset area. Participants from public and/or private sector organisations and businesses may be asked to pay a small fee. Contact us for details.

Communities outside the Bristol and Somerset area who are interested in community energy projects should check out CSE’s PlanLoCaL project (www.planlocal.org.uk) and see also our general training for communities page.

Previous courses

Small wind and community solar | 29 Jun | Knowle West Media Centre, Bristol
Consulting and engaging with your community | 18 Jul | Wells, Somerset
Energy basics for individual volunteers | 3 Aug | CSE's offices in Bristol
Solar photovoltaics: Talks and tour of a community scale system | 6 Aug | Tobacco Factory, Bristol
Legal structures for community groups | 13 Sep | Upper York Street, Bristol
Legal structures for community groups | 29 Sep | Crispin Community Centre, Street, Somerset
Renewable energy essentials | 8 Oct | Broughton House, Taunton, Somerset
Somerset Community Energy Forum | 26 Nov | Bridgwater, Somerset

How this small series of local training events came about

Bridget Newbery is CSE's Community Projects Manager. "The content of this series of events is shaped by what community groups have told us they need in an on-line consultation.

Top of the list are issues surrounding financing (63% of respondants), particularly in relation to the feed-in tariff and renewable heat incentive, followed by community consulation (44%), renewable energy (38%), legal structures (38%) and finally concerns around planning and permitted development (31%). We'll make sure that the training programme, which will run throughout the year, will reflect these priorities and others that community groups are keen to learn more about."

If you would like to be added to the mailing list for future events and workshops in Somerset and the former Avon area, or would like to find out about other support that is available from CSE for community energy projects, email us on communities@cse.org.uk

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