CosyDevon is on a mission to help residents across Devon save money on fuel bills and make their home warmer for years to come.
CosyDevon’s van will join Exmouth’s Christmas Cracker from 11am to 7pm on Saturday 6 December, in Rolle Street. David Stevenson, CosyDevon’s energy advisor, will be on hand to give people free energy advice and to help them apply for the scheme.
CosyDevon is an energy saving scheme launched in July 2014 by nine local authorities including East Devon District Council working in partnership with E.ON. It is investing up to £9 million in improving...
A new report, released today by renewable energy experts Regen SW, reveals that 16,000 people are employed by south west construction businesses in making our homes more energy efficient – but with, the right backing, this could be much higher.
The report – ‘The South West Retrofit Market Study’ – warns that, if we don’t act to support the sector now, the region could miss the opportunity to increase the 16,000 jobs and £1.1billion in economic benefits that the sector already supports.
“The south west has some of the oldest, most energy-inefficient houses in Europe, which...
Forty-three Devon schools have recently completed an energy education scheme, organised by Devon County Council in partnership with Resource Futures, resulting in some impressive savings.
Since September 2012, 1,757 pupils and 133 staff from schools across the county have undertaken whole school campaigns.
For the schools that completed the project in the spring and summer terms, 2014, eight schools have seen reductions of at least 15% on their energy use during the campaign. A further six schools lowered electricity consumption by 5 -15% during the campaign.
DECC has published new guidance on how wind energy schemes should work with local communities. Written by local renewable energy experts Regen SW, the guidance calls for partnerships between communities and developers of wind energy. The guidance focuses on how community benefit funds can be used effectively, following the commitment by the wind industry earlier this year to provide benefit packages of £5000 per MW per year to communities near wind energy schemes over 5MW in size. It gives examples of different ways in which funds and other investments by developers have been used by local...
A local energy co-op have signed an agreement with Exeter veg-box scheme and online farm shop Shillingford Organics to set-up the city’s first ever source of community-owned electricity – and in turn create an income for much needed community projects.
Exeter Community Energy (ECOE) is getting local people to team up and invest in solar panels which will supply the farm with cheap electricity. By selling electricity to the farm, they will create an income which can be used for community projects that tackle fuel poverty and energy efficiency.
Ed Davey has announced there will be a second phase of the Green Deal Home Improvement Fund (GDHIF) totalling £100m.
Applications for the new phase of the Green Deal Home Improvement Fund, designed to help people make energy saving improvements to their home, will open to applications before the end of November. The Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) are looking to improve the initiative in light of issues arising from phase 1.
Further details including terms and conditions, rates and all measures to be covered will also be announced in November. DECC are...
There is a huge pay gap between workers living in the East and West of the South West region, with the people living in the East the best paid, earning up to £17,000 more than those living in the West.
That’s one of the findings of the ManpowerGroup Pay League, a new series of local insights into UK pay trends from ManpowerGroup, the world leader in innovative workforce solutions.
ManpowerGroup’s analysis is based on the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings from the Office of National Statistics.
Average pay for those living in the region rose 0.8% – half the rate of...
A new project to support the growing community energy movement is being launched today by Regen SW funded nationally by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation with additional support being made available in Devon by Devon County Council.
The initiative will support communities to generate, own and save energy.
The Community Accelerator Project will work with at least 30 communities directly and countless others through publicly available training and tools.
Over the next few weeks Regen will be selecting 30 communities from over 200 in their network and over 5,000 groups...
Exeter City Council has commissioned a brand new city-wide initiative – a Low Emission Strategy - to improve Exeter’s air quality.
The main aim of the strategy is to protect people - especially the vulnerable - from respiratory and other potentially life-threatening illnesses related to poor air quality caused by traffic.
“Air pollution can be a hidden killer and Exeter is no different to most cities throughout the UK,” said Cllr Keith Owen, Lead Councillor for Environment, Health and Wellbeing.
“However we mustn’t be complacent and that’s why we’re trying to...
Help the environment, save money and energy - all reasons why people in Devon are being encouraged to keep up efforts to prevent waste going to landfill.
At the moment, the recycling rate in Devon stands at 55% which puts it as one of the best performing councils in the country.
However, with a target of 60% by 2020, further work is essential to carry on the good work by householders.
One of the main benefits of recycling is the cost saving. Disposing of a tonne of waste costs around £115 per tonne, whilst recycling a tonne of waste can give an income of between £30...
