Community Energy People

Bringing people power to community energy

We help to create communities where everyone can take part in positive climate action.

The Community Energy People project aims to grow the capacities of 11 local community energy groups by supporting them to recruit, develop, and retain new staff and volunteers. By creating green jobs across 11 counties, we will empower more local people from a diverse range of backgrounds to help combat the climate crisis. The extra people power will mean our partner groups can develop more projects, more quickly – contributing to a just transition in their local communities.

The project is funded by the National Lottery Community Fund

Project aims

Over a three-year period the project will:

  • Create 33 paid jobs in 11 community energy groups across England
  • Provide support for at least 100 volunteer roles
  • Guide our partner groups on how to develop their new teams and deliver larger projects in their local communities
  • Engage more people from under-represented backgrounds to discover community energy and empower them to play a bigger part in the transition to net zero.

So far, the project has helped to create 10 paid roles:

Interested in offering your skills as a volunteer?

Sustainable Danbury are also looking for volunteer directors to join their board. Read more here.

Our partner groups

In our first year, we are working with five established community energy groups to pilot the project before engaging six more groups for the remaining two years.

It is up to each group to decide which roles they require to support their development and project delivery. Our partner groups can decide what is best for them – and we will support them to make the greatest possible impact in their area.

Zero Carbon Guildford

Zero Carbon Guildford is a vibrant registered charity that delivers a range of community-based climate and environment activities to help the Guildford and surrounding area achieve net zero by 2030.

They are working with the project to hire a marketing and communications manager who will work to grow participation across their diverse programmes, as well as hire people to support the business energy survey in their local area. They aim to increase their engagement with groups that have not been well represented.

MaidEnergy

MaidEnergy is an experienced Community Energy Benefit Society operating in East Berkshire and North Surrey. Having successfully delivered several solar-photovoltaic arrays and a heat pump project, they are now investigating the feasibility of a hydro project on the River Thames.

They already employ one part-time member of staff, and are hiring two additional co-ordinators to expand their capacity and skills.

Sustainable Danbury

Located near Chelmsford in Essex, Sustainable Danbury is looking for people to help with their strategy and planning, as well as communications and engagement. They are also hoping to expand their board by recruiting new volunteer directors. This will help them to achieve their aims of supporting local sustainability, biodiversity and community energy.

Unlike other groups, they are initially hoping to recruit freelancers to help them develop before eventually exploring the options for taking on salaried staff. They are particularly keen to collaborate with and learn from the other project groups.

Rossendale Valley Energy

Rossendale Valley Energy is an ambitious group that wants to expand its team. They hope to reduce their reliance on grant funding and want to recruit someone with financial and administrative experience.

This will help them to continue to deliver energy advice in their community and roll out their innovative Net Zero Terrace Streets project, which aims to improve the sustainability of some of the area’s lowest-income homes.

Energise South Downs

Energise South Downs is a fast-growing group working to deliver sustainability initiatives in and around the national park. They deliver Future Energy Landscape workshops that have engaged over 200 people from across Hampshire. Their first rooftop solar project will generate 280kW and save 56 tonnes of carbon in its first year.

The group have already used project funding to employ a team leader to steer them through a crucial period. They plan to recruit people to help with marketing, communications and project support in the near future.

The project is funded by the National Lottery Community Fund and is made possible by National Lottery players.