An innovative community initiative has recently installed solar panels on 3 Dorset village halls, Martinstown, Salway Ash and Osmington, under a scheme whereby the village halls will receive free electricity from the solar panels.
Tom Burnett, Director of Dorset Community Energy, a not-for-profit Community Benefit Society supported by the Big Lottery Communities Living Sustainably in Dorset project said, “Three local schools have expressed interest in similar solar PV installations during the August school holidays. The solar panel installations are estimated to provide more than £200,000 of free electricity to the 3 participating schools and 3 village halls over a period of 20 years. In addition school pupils will be able to view from any computer the real-time electricity generation from the solar panels, providing a useful teaching resource for science and technology students.”
The overall aim of the scheme is to allow local people to benefit in addition to the schools and village halls.
Tom Burnett explained, “Dorset Community Energy is a Community Benefit Society registered with the Financial Conduct Authority. This enables local people to buy shares in the solar panels on schools and village halls. The Dorset Community Energy business plan is based on paying 5%- 6% per year interest to local investors. In addition qualifying taxpayers may be eligible for a 50% tax refund on the amount invested. The minimum level of investment is £100, but potential investors need to take independent advice and look in detail at the share offer document – an investment in shares is not the same as saving money in a bank.”
There will be a public meeting to explain the community shares offer at 7pm on Friday 5thJune in the Wessex Royale Hotel, Dorchester. The share offer document and application form for shares will also be available after 5thJune on the Dorset Community Energy website www.dorsetcommunityenergy.org.uk
More information:
For further background information about CLS in Dorset, visit www.clsdorset.org.uk
1. Communities Living Sustainably (CLS) in Dorset is supported by the Big Lottery Fund for a three year period from March 2013. Dorset is one of the Big Lottery Fund’s 12 Communities Living Sustainably (CLS) programmes in England, and is the only such programme in the Southwest.
2. CLS in Dorset aims to help people adapt to climate change and to live more sustainably. The project strives to act as a catalyst for action, building on the great work already taking place in the local area and exploring some innovative approaches. The programme is being delivered in Bridport, Dorchester and their surrounding areas.
CLS in Dorset has various interrelated strands of activity related to Greener Choices and Energy Efficiency; Renewable Energy; Local Food; Eco-Schools; Climate Change Adaptation with fishing and farming communities and older people.
CLS in Dorset is a partnership led by Dorset Community Action, and including Dorset AONB, , Dorset County Council, Dorset Coast Forum, Dorset Public Health, Dorset Agenda 21, Transition Town Bridport, Transition Town Dorchester, West Dorset Partnership, and WSX Enterprise Ltd as the core delivery organisations.
3. Communities Living Sustainably is part of the Big Lottery Fund’s £50m Sustainable and Resilient Communities strategy, which aims to encourage behaviour change among individuals and communities so they can cope better with the environmental, economic and social impacts of a changing climate. 12 community partnerships of public, private and voluntary sector bodies have been awarded up to £1m each to deliver up to five years of community-led sustainability interventions.
4. Groundwork UK is leading the Communities Living Sustainably Learning Partnership, which also comprises New Economics Foundation (NEF), the Federation for City Farms and Community Gardens (FCFCG), Buildings Research Establishment (BRE) and the Energy Saving Trust ( EST). Research themes include “understanding change and impact” and “learning how communities learn about sustainability”. www.communitieslivingsustainably.org.u
5. The Big Lottery Fund, the largest of the National Lottery good cause distributors, has been rolling out grants to health, education, environment and charitable causes across the UK since its inception in June 2004. It was established by Parliament on 1 December 2006. Website: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk
Zoe Smith
