Community Energy Fund
Community Energy Fund
Applications for Community Energy Fund Round 3 are now open.
Overview
The Community Energy Fund (CEF) is a £10m grant scheme for urban and rural communities to develop energy services to benefit their local area.
The funding will help to kickstart clean energy projects including small-scale wind farms and rooftop solar partnerships, as well as battery storage, rural heat networks, electric vehicle charging points. It can also be used to fund fuel poverty alleviation schemes such as energy efficiency, retrofit, and advice projects.
The new fund follows the success of the Rural Community Energy Fund (RCEF), with an expanded remit to include both rural and urban areas in England.
Aims of the scheme
The CEF aims to empower local people to take control of their energy future by:
- Increasing the number of community-owned low-carbon energy assets
- Supporting communities to reduce energy cost and demand
- Generating local income through community-owned energy assets
- Reinvesting income locally and kickstarting private investment
- Supporting local jobs, growth and volunteering opportunities
- Enabling places to benefit from clean, renewable, local energy
The fund will achieve its aims by supporting the earlier-development stages of community-scale projects.
About the funding
The fund is for the development of projects from concept to investment-ready scheme. It does not provide capital funding for the installation of projects themselves.
Funding will be offered for a Stage 1 Feasibility Grant of up to £40k to produce a feasibility study to establish the technical and financial viability of a project, and/or a Stage 2 Development Grant of up to £100k for a more detailed investigation of the technology, for planning applications and to develop a business case.
Who can apply to the CEF?
The fund is for eligible community-based organisations on England with projects that will bring benefits to the local community. These are:
- Amateur sports clubs
- Charitable Incorporated Organisations
- Community Benefit Societies
- Community Interest Companies
- Co-operative Societies
- Development Trusts
- Faith Groups
- Pre-commencement societies
- Registered charities
- Registered Social Landlords (partnered with a community group)
- Town or Parish councils
Applicants need to show that a good level of community engagement has been carried out, and that there is genuine community support for the project, including plans for ongoing community engagement.
How will the fund be delivered?
The CEF is a national scheme funded by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. It will be delivered through the five Local Net Zero Hubs across England, which support the public sector and not-for-profit organisations to develop net zero projects and attract investment.
Eligible applicants should apply to the Fund via their local Net Zero Hub. Full guidance and application documents will be published here when the Fund launches.
Apply for the Community Energy Fund
The North East and Yorkshire Net Zero Hub will run three application rounds for the Community Energy Fund, subject to funding available, with timescales for the first round as follows:
Round 1
Open for applications – 05/12/23
Close for applications – 05/01/24
Round 2
Open for applications – 04/03/24
Close for applications – 05/05/24
Round 3
Open for applications – 19/08/24
Close for applications – 13/10/24
Please send your completed application to enquiries@NEYnetzerohub.com
If you need any support prior to submitting your application, please contact enquiries@NEYnetzerohub.com
Successful Projects
Round 1 –
- Broomhaugh and Riding Parish Council – awarded £29,900 to investigate the feasibility of their Tynedale Hydro Electric Project.
- Northumberland Community Energy Ltd – awarded £30,982 to investigate the feasibility of solar PV and accompanying battery storage on 17 buildings in North Northumberland.
- Northumberland Community Energy Ltd – awarded £29,160 to investigate the feasibility of solar PV and accompanying battery storage on 16 buildings in West Northumberland.
- Spennymoor Town Council – awarded £35,500 to investigate the feasibility of a solar development at the former aerodrome site in Spennymoor.
- South Yorkshire EcoFit CIC – awarded £40,000 to investigate the feasibility of a delivery model to provide energy advice to residents across South Yorkshire.
- Todmorden Community Energy – awarded £10,000 to investigate the feasibility of a wind power project in the local area.
- York Community Energy – awarded £19,534 to investigate the feasibility of rooftop solar arrays on 6 buildings in York, with associated outputs supporting the local community and their York Energy Advice service.
- Norham Development Trust Ltd – awarded £100,000 to further develop their wind and solar community project in Norham and bring it to an investment ready level, following feasibility work undertaken through the previous Rural Community Energy Fund.
More on CEF
Useful FAQs for the Community Energy Fund – List of FAQ’s
On 10th April, the North East and Yorkshire Net Zero Hub held a Community Energy Fund webinar. The webinar provided an overview of the programme and the funding available, shared lessons learned from Round 1 of the fund, and gave an opportunity to ask the Hub questions.
You can view the slides from the webinar here – CEF Webinar Presentation
On the 8th March, Regen held a Community Energy Fund webinar in collaboration with Northern Powergrid and the NEY Net Zero Hub. The webinar shared top tips for the application process and provided detail on how to strengthen your application.
DESNZ Announcement on the CEF: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/communities-at-the-heart-of-new-fund-to-boost-local-growth-and-energy-security
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