Winter warmer for villagers as scheme gets funding boost
A COMMUNITY Interest Company formed in a village near Ashbourne to help provide clean, green heating energy to more than 200 houses has been given a major funding boost.
Brassington Community Heating hopes to find a way of installing heating systems run on renewable, low-emission energy such as wind turbines and heat pumps for a price everyone in the village can afford.
The not-for-profit company, run by volunteers in the village, has been given a grant of £37,720 from the Rural Community Energy Fund.
The funding will be used to complete an initial design feasibility study by consultant engineers Sharenergy and Carbon Alternatives to establish the practicality and cost of providing a heating system for the 235 households in Brassington.
The company has its eyes on a heating system that will use renewable, low emission energy such as wind turbines or possibly, a combination of ground and air source heat pumps at an installation and running cost that is intended to be affordable to everyone in the village.
A spokesman for Brassington Community Heating said: “Following the news from the recent COP26 conference in Glasgow, the importance of taking action at a local community level has never been clearer. If successful, the feasibility study in Brassington village will lead to a full-scale project which will save residents money and be an example of what can be achieved within the Derbyshire Dales region to mitigate the effects of the climate crisis.”
The Community Interest Company has been set up by a group of local homeowners who are concerned about the effects of global warming on both their own lives and the future of their children and grandchildren.
The spokesman said: “We have become increasingly aware of the effects that global warming is having on our personal lives.
“During the past year, we have witnessed the devastating impact of a rising global temperature worldwide with increased wildfires, flooding, and heatwaves.
“Following in the footsteps of other local communities, such as Youlgreave and Swaffham Prior, in Brassington, we are committed to finding ways to reduce our carbon footprint.
“We are thrilled to have received grant funding from the Rural Community Energy Fund which will allow us to investigate opportunities to bring renewable energy to the village, at a cost which is affordable to all our residents. This funding provides us with an opportunity to transform our energy consumption, and I can’t wait to find out the results of the study.”
The Rural Community Energy Fund is a £10m programme which supports communities in England to develop renewable energy projects, which provide economic and social benefits to the community.
The fund is being run by five regional Local Energy Hubs, with the Midlands Energy Hub overseeing areas including Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, along with other areas of the Midlands.