Bromley-by-Bow Centre, in Tower Hamlets, has been awarded £11,950 towards a project to install solar panels on their community centre. They aim to install around 56 solar panels. The renewable system will be used to raise awareness of clean energy to their community and any profit form the FiT would go into a community fund that can be used to support existing fuel poverty advice services.

Brent Pure Energy is a Community Benefit Society, registered and regulated by the Financial Conduct Association. They offer local community organisations a chance to cut down on their carbon emissions and their energy costs, and local people a chance to invest in solar energy, giving both a reasonable return on investment and a chance to help the community.
Their latest project, a 50 kWp solar array on Queens Park Community School, and is now up and producing sustainable electricity! This equates to 198 panels and is generating some 47,500 kWh of electricity per annum. More than 99% of this electricity is used by the school, resulting in a saving to the school of around £2500 a year!

Brixton Energy was set up by Repowering London, who have successfully established four community energy projects on social housing, including Solar One on Elmore House (37.24kWp), Solar Two on Styles Gardens (45kWp), Solar Three on Roupell Park (52kWp) and Banister House Solar (102kWp) in collaboration with Hackney Energy.

The Calthorpe Project in Camden has been awarded £9,775 to undertake wider community engagement and develop a financially viable solar project on their community centre located in Kings Cross. Funding from the Mayor will enable the Calthorpe Project to complete a feasibility study and design for solar panel installation and also draft a share offer.

CREW is the first community energy group in London to complete an LED replacement project under a lighting services agreement. They offer a range of technological solutions to help community groups, businesses and home owners save energy and become more efficient. They are also launching a series of energy cafes throughout 2019 to help people reduce their energy bills, make their homes more efficient and lift out of fuel poverty.

In partnership with Ealing Council and the Schools’ Energy Co-operative, Ealing Transition have helped to provide solar panels for several local schools. Members invested through a crowdfunding scheme and will receive a small amount of interest yearly.

Ealing Transition are also involved with helping to make the local housing stock more energy efficient – energy saving renovations by their members are available online.

London Sustainable Exchange (LSx) has been awarded £6,130 to install solar panels on the Edward Woods Community Centre in Hammersmith & Fulham. The owners of the community centre hope the electricity savings and income from the Feed-in-Tariff (FiT) will be able to fund additional projects at the community centre, such as increasing the capacity of the Community Kitchen. They hope to install around 85 solar panels, which should generate just under 20,000 kWh per year.

Energy Garden is the world’s first citywide programme that combines community energy and gardening projects. The programme is creating an interconnected network of Energy Gardens, adding natural beauty to London’s Overground stations and raising awareness of renewable energy generation. The gardening spaces are powered by solar water pumps and solar lighting. There are also plans for interactive solar powered notice boards to stay up to date with community projects.

Solar assets owned by Energy Garden, plus solar installed by Energy Garden on stations and depots, produce a revenue which will support the gardens and well-being programmes which Energy Garden runs.

En10ergy was set up by Muswell Hill Sustainability Group to help:

• to promote and invest in local renewable energy
• to encourage and facilitate the reduction in carbon emissions and waste by households, businesses and community buildings in Muswell Hill and surrounding areas.

Hackney Energy helped to bring the first community-owned energy enterprise to Hackney, Banister House Solar. Other projects include a local playground, Homerton Grove and another possible first – a solar cinema!

This project is a particularly interesting case; the Teddington & Ham Hydro was a planned renewable scheme based on the installation of three hydro power turbines on the River Thames at Teddington Weir. The group had planning permission from the local authority and had raised substantial funds to make the project feasible and help power 600 homes locally. In a series of extraordinary events, this community project was blocked by the oil company Shell, who owned a local hotel – the Lensbury Club – and prevented the project from going ahead. The group appealed the decision but the Court of Appeal and senior judges ruled in favour of the multinational oil and gas company.

Highbury Vale Blackstock Trust has been awarded £2,666 to finish development and feasibility work towards the installation of solar panels on Elizabeth House community centre, Islington. They hope to install around 45 solar panels.

The Highgate Society Sustainable Living group aims to help people find the inspiration and information they need to make energy-aware choices. Formed early in 2011, the Highgate Society sustainable homes group has been researching the opportunities and potential pitfalls of energy efficient refurbishment (and new build) within the boroughs that constitute Highgate. The core team is made up of people with professional backgrounds in this or related fields: architecture and urban planning, sustainable energy, environmental advocacy, communications and conference organisation.

Most of the team have already taken steps to introduce significant energy efficiency and/or renewable energy measures in our own homes. They have created the 21Century Homes concept, working with local groups, particularly the Muswell Hill Sustainability Group (MHSG) on events that showcase local and national products with the theme of character, comfort and low carbon.

Holly Lodge Estate Committee has been awarded £1,882 to develop a project and get planning permission to install electric vehicle charging stations on the Holly Lodge Estate in Camden.

IFEES help people of faith to be more aware of the human impact on the environment. Through initiatives such as their Green Mosque Project, they encourage the building of eco-friendly features into mosques and promote taking measures to make buildings and congregations more eco-friendly.

Some mosques are initiating projects such as gardens, bee-keeping, farm visits, nature walks and tree-planting schemes. Some of these measures help keep down running costs, or even turn into enterprises that support themselves, while getting worshippers to work together and get to know one another better!

a Community Benefit Society set up to allow people to invest in renewable energy generation in Lambeth schools and community buildings while sharing the profits between investors and the local community.

London Sustainable Exchange (LSx) has been awarded a second grant of £6,130 to install solar panels on the Masbro Centre in Hammersmith & Fulham. The electricity savings and income from the FiT will help fund additional projects at the community centre. They hope to install around 68 solar panels, which would generate about 15,000 kWh per year.