Three communities in Bath and North East Somerset are set to take part in a scheme exploring the potential for community-owned renewable energy projects.
St Catherine’s and Batheaston, Twerton and Whiteway, and Radstock and Westfield were selected from 19 organisations that registered their interest in taking part in the Energy in Your Community project, a partnership project involving Bath & North East Somerset Council, Bath & West Community Energy (BWCE), the Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE) and the University of Bath.
The project aims to support the development of 5MW of community-owned renewable generation across the Bath and North East Somerset area by 2030.
The three communities selected will be offered support to identify, develop and promote small-scale renewable energy projects such as wind farms or solar farms, which would be set up and owned by the community with the benefits to be retained by the community.
Councillor Sarah Warren, cabinet member for climate emergency and sustainable travel, said: “We had a fantastic response to our call out for communities that were interested in developing capacity for local energy generation and I’d like to thank everyone who expressed an interest in taking part.
“I will be keeping a close eye on progress as the three areas develop their ideas and involve more residents in discussions about which types of renewable energy might work locally.
“Any community-owned capacity established as a result of this project will not only benefit the community but will also help contribute to the council’s goal of 300MW of renewable energy generation capacity.”
The communities will take part in a series of workshops that use the Future Energy Landscape (FEL) methodology developed by CSE as a guide.
Neil Best, Senior Town Planner and community engagement expert from CSE, said: “We’re excited to be taking the next steps with 12 of the 19 groups that came forward.
“Our regional-grouping approach means we’ll be focusing our efforts where community interest is strongest, and where neighbouring communities can collaborate for greater impact.”
Residents in any of these areas who would like to find out more or get involved, can email [email protected].
Three Bath and North East Somerset communities that took part in the 2022 Future Energy Landscape (FEL) pilots with the council and the Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE) – Peasedown and Wellow, Temple Cloud and Hinton Blewitt and Stowey Sutton and East and West Harptree – have already progressed to the second stage of the process.
As part of this stage the groups will be supported by CSE and BWCE to research any options that are technically and financially realistic and explore local sites, funding possibilities and delivery models.
Skye Frewin, Renewable Energy Outreach Coordinator at BWCE, said: “We’re delighted to support local residents as they explore the opportunities of locally owned community energy and the direct benefits it can bring back into their area.
“This is a community-led process, and we’re excited to see the ideas that emerge. If you live or work in one of the focus areas, we encourage you to get involved – your participation will help ensure the project develops in a way that’s most impactful and beneficial for you and your community.”
Residents of Peasedown and Wellow who are interested in finding out more about locally owned renewables can join the conversation at The Hive, Bath Road, Peasedown Saint John BA2 8DH on 8th November.
A drop-in event will run between 10am and 1pm with a talk and presentation from 10.30am to 11am that will be repeated from 12pm to 12.30pm.
Tickets can be booked on Eventbrite here or people can just turn up. There will be tea, cake and children’s games.
