Community Energy Solutions has appointed Penny Stobbs of Washington into the role of Project Finance Officer as part of our commitment to bring mass market renewable technology to the region.

Penny, who brings to the role over 24 years of experience in finance and planning in both the public and private sectors, is delighted with her new position. She said:

“I have always worked directly with local communities, from raising bike safety awareness with young children to charity fundraising. Having lived in the South East for 30 years, it’s great to return to the North East and get involved with a project like CES.”

A Leeds-based community interest organisation has taken the first steps towards £7.5m worth of new European funding which will help thousands of low income households living in hard to treat homes receive energy saving measures.

Community Energy Solutions (CES), based on The Calls in central Leeds, is a non-profit distributing organisation, working in deprived communities to help upgrade their fuel and insulation solutions to cleaner, greener and cheaper options.

Now, CES has received the news that its application to the Yorkshire and Humber European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) has passed the first hurdle. It has several more stages to go through before the funding can be approved.

Lee Cattermole, Operations Director for CES, said: “We are under no illusions that we still have much work to do before the funding is finally approved, but just to get through the first phase of the application is great news.

The Government’s Secretary of State for the Environment has visited Huddersfield to visit an innovative renewable energy scheme.

Community Energy Solutions (CES), working in partnership with Kirklees Neighbourhood Housing (KNH), recently installed 60 state-of-the-art air source heat pumps (ASHPs) into homes in Caldercliffe and the Rt Hon Hilary Benn MP, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs accompanied local MP Barry Sheerman on a visit to meet residents who are now benefitting from the new heating systems.

All of the homes, which are off the gas network, previously had to rely on outdated electric storage heaters. CES is a non-profit-distributing organisation, funded by Yorkshire Forward and the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC), which helps those off the gas network and living in fuel poverty gain access to cleaner, cheaper and greener fuel sources. Using heat pumps can help reduce domestic heating energy needs by up to 70% and can help cool homes in summer.

A rural community is set to receive long-awaited gas supplies to its homes following a ground-breaking partnership scheme.

North Lincolnshire Homes and Community Energy Solutions (CES) have worked together to help bring together all the necessary elements to extend the main gas supply into the area of Overton Court in Barton upon Humber.

In all, 57 homes look set to benefit from the scheme; homes that have previously had to rely on expensive outdated, and environmentally-unfriendly fuel sources such as electric underfloor heating and storage heaters which are difficult to control.  Preparation groundwork has already started, and it is expected the work should finish before the end of the summer.