A BWCE grant programme will open for the third time this autumn, aimed at helping communities in Bath and the surrounding area to reduce carbon emissions and tackle fuel poverty.
At a time when some smaller charities and community groups are struggling to meet their core costs, Bath & West Community Energy (BWCE) is demonstrating its support of the communities it works in by distributing £40,000 through the Bath & West Community Low Carbon Fund CIO (BWCE Fund).
The grants of up to £5,000 will go to support local community groups who want to develop projects to reduce carbon emissions and address fuel poverty.
Award-winning energy company BWCE was set up in 2010 to own and develop renewable energy projects and is set to become the largest community-owned energy company in England.
As a Community Benefit Society it gives its surplus profits to the BWCE Fund, which then redistributes them to relevant projects. Now in its third year the BWCE Fund has awarded 18 grants at a total of £64,605 to help groups reduce carbon emissions and/or tackle fuel poverty.
Quartet Community Foundation administers the BWCE Fund grants programme which opened for applications on 30th September 2016 and applications are sought for grants of up to £5,000.
The grants previously awarded have ranged from funding the installation of solar panels at St Saviour’s School in Larkhall, to enabling volunteers working with Age UK Bath & North East Somerset to support older people throughout B&NES who are experiencing fuel poverty.
Another beneficiary was the local children’s centre First Steps, which spent their grant money on commissioning an energy report for their building, to understand where they could become more green and efficient. It’s highlighted lots of ways in which they were wasting money on energy, and opportunities to improve.
“The report has encouraged us to change our thermostat system and lag pipes within the building”, said First Steps Chief Executive Roz Lambert, “and we’re even looking at the possibility of having solar panelling. All of this will save money for us in the long-term, so that we can continue to focus on the work we do with young children.”
Full details of the grants awarded can be found on BWCE’s website.
Chair of the BWCE Fund, Peter Harvey, said: “It’s very satisfying to not only give our members a reasonable return on their investment but to be able to use our surplus profits to fund a whole range of local projects that will, by reducing carbon emissions, go towards protecting future generations from the effects of climate change.”
“We’re delighted to be working with the BWCE Fund”, said Quartet Community Foundation’s Chief Executive Sue Turner. “We hope that this year’s grants programme will energise local community groups to develop projects that include developing more sustainable ways of delivering their services.
“Some charitable organisations and community groups are literally struggling to ‘keep the lights on’ due to shrinking statutory funding and increasing numbers of local people facing hardship and disadvantage.
“This grants programme has the double benefit of supporting projects which reduce carbon emissions and those that tackle fuel poverty, often reducing the core energy costs of those charitable organisations and community groups and enabling them to continue to deliver vital services well into the future.”
The deadline for applications is 16th November 2016. For full details of the fund and to check if your group is eligible to apply, visit and apply online at www.quartetcf.org.uk/grant-programmes or you can call or email Quartet Community Foundation on 0117 989 7700 or [email protected].
