News / Bristol city leap
Award-winning energy partnership distributes £300k for community green power projects
A Bristol-based energy partnership which is hailed as a “blueprint” model for city-scale decarbonisation has completed a second round of funding for a series of community-driven energy initiatives.
Bristol City Leap, a partnership between Bristol City Council, Ameresco and Vattenfall Heat UK, has distributed a funding package worth £300k among 15 renewable energy projects which constitute a diverse range of community groups.
Among the beneficiaries were Windmill Hill City Farm, Woodlands Church Family, BS3 Community Development, SS Great Britain Trust and many more.
The second round of the Community Energy Fund, worth £1.5 million, was designed to support community-led energy projects and continues to build on Bristol’s pledge for a “greener, more sustainable future”.
The projects underscore multiple facets of renewable energy such as feasibility studies on energy generation and retrofit, installation for solar panels as well as a school programme that empowers young people to learn about climate change while designing and leading projects to reduce their schools’ carbon footprints.
Windmill Hill City Farm was among the 15 beneficiaries of the second funding round of Community Energy Fund – photo: Orchard Sauna
Mark Apsey, senior vice president at Ameresco, said: “By investing in community-driven energy projects, we are empowering Bristol’s residents to take meaningful action toward decarbonisation. The success of these 15 projects will inspire even more change across the city.”
The £1.5m Community Energy Fund, created through contributions of £750,000 each from Ameresco and Vattenfall has been considered as a vital component of Bristol City Leap’s effort to support sustainable energy initiatives across the city.
The partnership aims to fund schemes to reduce fossil fuel use and enable connections to the Bristol heat network by offering financial support to community organisations.
Woodland Church Family represents the diverse nature of community-led energy projects – photo: Woodland Church
Dominic Barton, director of Heat Networks, Bristol at Vattenfall Heat UK, said: “We’re proud to support so many incredible projects that are empowering communities to take control of their energy use.”
After the completion of the second round of Community Energy Fund, City Leap has officially opened entries for the third round which will be open to community groups representing charities, faith organisations and other initiatives across Bristol (BS1 to BS16).
City Leap has recently signed the Bristol Equalities Charter alongside several of its supply chain partners, including Thermamech and JeffWay.
James Sterling, communications and social value manager for Bristol City Leap, said: “Today marks an important milestone on our journey to creating a greener, more just and more inclusive response to the climate crisis.
“At Bristol City Leap, we put social value at the heart of everything that we do, ensuring that our efforts to decarbonise the city, also deliver the greatest opportunities to bring everyone along on the journey to net zero.”
City Leap has recently signed the Bristol Equalities Charter alongside several of its supply chain partners, including Thermamech and JeffWay – photo: City Leap
To learn about City Leap or apply for the third round of funding, visit www.bristolcityleap.co.uk/community/community-energy-fund
Main photo: City Leap
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