Community-led action can help reduce energy use

257 Communities are taking action to reduce energy use in many different ways. Community energy saving activity might mean a small group of people organising a one-off meeting to share energy-saving tips; a project to insulate a community building; a long-term

commitment by a whole village to cut their carbon emissions and energy bills; or a social enterprise becoming a Green Deal Provider and driving the uptake of energy efficiency. 258 We know that community-led action can have an influence on individual energy

behaviour. For example, people’s energy use can be influenced by their perceptions of how much their neighbours use, and people’s attitudes towards saving energy can be affected by what is perceived as ‘normal’ in their community.104

Some types of community interventions that focus on habitual behaviour change can have an impact of around 5-10% on a

household’s energy use.105

259 As has been seen across projects supported by the £31m DECC Local Authority Fuel Poverty Competition 2012/13, community groups and local partner organisations can play an important role in ensuring that vulnerable households and those that are struggling with the cost of energy can access support to help them save energy and lower bills. In cases where living in a cold home has a direct link to poor health and wellbeing, action to improve energy efficiency can have life-changing benefits. Use of local community networks and knowledge can help organisations to identify households most in need, and can help them through processes such as switching energy supplier, installing energy efficiency measures, using new and unfamiliar systems and checking entitlements to benefits that may lead to eligibility for support schemes such as ECO or Warm Home Discount. Recognition of this role

underpinned the establishment of the BESN – see Section 10.106

260 The Community Energy Efficiency Outreach Programme, published alongside this

Strategy, tested a number of engagement techniques in six pilot areas and one online forum. The results revealed that community engagement initiatives are most effective when they focus on fewer, simpler steps and where advice is provided through a trusted source.107 261 It remains difficult to model the potential impact of community activity on energy

consumption overall, but there are some compelling examples of projects which have had a real and quantified impact. Existing projects such as the British Gas Green Streets

programme (see case study 17) demonstrate the potential impact of community energy- saving activity on energy use and carbon emissions.

262 Similarly, in Ashton Hayes in Cheshire108 (case study 21), one community has

successfully reduced carbon emissions by 23%, including homes and transport. 109 9.4% of

104

DECC, Cabinet Office and DCLG (2011): Behaviour Change and Energy Use

(https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/48123/2135-behaviour-change-and- energy-use.pdf) 105 http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20130109092117/http://decc.gov.uk/assets/decc/11/tackling-climate- change/saving-energy-co2/6921-what-works-in-changing-energyusing-behaviours-in-.pdf 106

Possible footnote to Local Authority Competition process evaluation

107

Community Energy Efficiency Outreach Programme, DECC 2014:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/learnings-from-the-decc-community-energy-efficiency-outreach- programme 108 http://www.goingcarbonneutral.co.uk 109 http://www.goingcarbonneutral.co.uk/storage/Earth%20Hour%201.pdf

English residents live in villages and dispersed households110, and so if the success of Ashton Hayes was repeated in all villages in England, household emissions in England would fall by 2.2%.

Case study 17: British Gas Green Streets

British Gas Green Streets was a £2m project launched in 2009 to help diverse communities across England, Scotland and Wales save and generate energy. Almost 100 groups entered the competition, with 14 finalists selected to receive further funding and the chance to compete for a further £100,000 investment. Communities were encouraged to design their own projects, and energy efficiency was a key focus alongside use of renewable technologies. Projects included a scheme to increase the energy performance of an open-air community swimming pool (Beccles Lido, Suffolk); a project to improve the energy efficiency of vulnerable residents’ homes

(Casterton Village, Cumbria); and a project to engage residents of a multicultural Birmingham suburb in reducing energy use and carbon emissions (SusMo).

An evaluation of the scheme by IPPR (Institute for Public Policy Research) found that significant carbon savings were achieved – 6.3% carbon savings per household on average, with total annual carbon savings estimated at 215tCO2 per year across all 14 projects. A significant

proportion of savings were from energy efficiency and heating measures in homes and community buildings, including insulation (cavity wall, and loft), replacement boilers, heat pumps, and solar thermal, as well as renewable electricity generation.

The evaluation also found evidence of changes in attitudes within the wider community towards installing energy efficiency measures and microgeneration technologies. A survey of 1,300 people living within an average distance of 1.25km from community buildings that participated in the projects found that 41% were aware of the Green Streets project in their neighbourhood. Of those who were aware, 30% said it had changed their attitudes towards energy efficiency and renewable energy, and 46% said they had been inspired to take action on energy efficiency and renewable energy (with half of those inspired to take action on insulation). A further 61% said they would be more likely to take action on energy in the future.

The IPPR report on the project can be found here:

http://www.ippr.org/publications/55/7703/green-streets-strong-communities

110

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/69493/pb13642-rural-digest- 2012.pdf

75 263 This chapter focusses on:

 Helping communities save energy and money through energy advice;  Involving communities in energy saving policy;

 Helping communities access funding for energy saving projects.