Resources
Suppliers
Community Energy London have a fantastic set of resources to get started on community energy, including a list of potential suppliers.
- Contractors and Suppliers – Community Energy London
- To identify MCS certified installers in Hounslow: https://mcscertified.com/find-an-installer/
- National Insulation Association – Find an installer: https://www.nia-uk.org/find-an-installer/
Explainers and Guides
Here are some resources that you might find helpful as you embark on your community energy journey:
- Community Energy England & Community Energy London offer a platform of resources which collate all things community energy.
- Next Generation - offers practical guides for community energy groups.
- Centre for Sustainable Energy provides a helpful explainer guide for carrying out an energy audit to improve energy efficiency in community buildings. If you’re applying for retrofit, attach potential contractor’s energy survey or fill in as much of the ‘LBH Non-Domestic Energy Survey’ to identify where energy efficiency improvements can be made.
Match Funding
Some useful sources of match funding include:
- Community Energy England – provides an up-to date list of national and location-based funding opportunities.
- Centre for Sustainable Energy – list of funding opportunities which may be relevant to your project idea.
- Awards for All - between £300 and £10,000 for smaller charities and community-led groups.
- The National Lottery Community Fund Reaching Communities – funding over £10,000 for up to five years to VCS groups which plan to take action on issues
- The National Lottery Heritage Fund – funding starts from £3,000 for projects that connect people to local, regional, or national heritage.that matter to people. Covers project activities, operating costs, organisational development, and capital costs.
- Heathrow Community Trust – funding schemes which improve the environment for communities surrounding the airport, such as increasing the provision of green space, improving the sustainability of community buildings and raising awareness of environmental issues
A number of funds are targeted specifically at churches and faith groups.
Here are some examples:
- The Churches and Community Fund (CCF) gives grants to community projects run by parish churches, deaneries, dioceses and other bodies connected to or working in partnership with the Church of England: The Church and Community Fund (ccfund.org.uk) See also: Funding - Parish Resources
- The National Churches Trust aims to protect and support the built heritage of churches, chapels and meeting houses throughout the UK: www.nationalchurchestrust.org
- Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme - gives grants that cover the VAT incurred in making repairs to listed buildings in use as places of worship.