The Rural Energy Community Fund was a national scheme established by the Department of Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy in recognition of the importance of community energy in England. RCEF was delivered by five regional Net Zero Hubs, and has supported over 200 new community energy projects since its inception in 2019.
Community Energy England has worked in partnership with the Net Zero Hubs to collate a number of key resources and legacies to build on this £10 million programme, including:
- A national map of the programme - Collated in partnership with the Net Zero Hubs, CEE's national map contains all projects iniated under the RCEF programme. It is the most comprehensive database for local authorities, research institutes and other partners who may be interested on projects and groups funded through the programme as well as wider community energy projects operating across the country. A downloadable guide on using the map is avaliable here.
- National case study catalogue - A shorter catalogue of national case studies is avaliable to download by Hub region, below:
North West
Bendrigg / Brampton 2 Zero (1) / Brampton 2 Zero (2) / Bretherton / Bretton Hall / Buttermere / Chipping / Congleton Park / Dane Valley / Duddon / Irwell Hydro / Keswick / Kirkby / Lakeside / Lymm / Mellor / Nantwich Mill Community Energy / Northern Roots / Partington / Prospects Community / Rochdale / Skelmersdale / Southport Ecocentre
North East & Yorkshire
Askrigg / Bishop Auckland / Monk Fryston and Hillam / N and E Yorkshire Methodist Churches / Norham / Northumberland / TCNCC / Thwing and Octon Parish Council / Haltwhistle Partnership (in progress) / Humshaugh Net Zero PV (in progress) / Wetherby (in progress) /
South West
Chelson Meadow / Clay Park / Clayworks / Energy Local Bridport / Marshfield / Nadder Community / Wadebridge
Midlands
Belper / Bigby / Bradgate Park Trust / Brassington / Cromford Mills / Derbyshire Dales Community Energy / Eckington / Framland Deanery Sustainable Churches / Harbury Future Energy / Hayfield / Hope Valley Renewables / Hungarton / KSCA Zero Carbon / Lutterworth / Measham / Shenstone / Wilsford
South East
Case studies for the South East region are featured on the South East Net Zero Hub's website here.
With special thanks
With thanks to Lancashire County Council for funding this legacy work, and to the Net Zero Hubs for commissioning Community Energy England and Community Energy South in its delivery. We also encourage you to look at the Top 10 Guide to Getting Started for new groups, which was also funded by this coalition (download below).