Eligibility Criteria
Eligible organisations
We support community-based, non-profit groups. Don’t worry if you’re not formally set up yet – if you’re working towards it, we’d still love to hear from you. Organisation types include:
- Parish or town councils.
- Community Interest Companies (CICs).
- Charitable Incorporated Organisations (CIOs).
- Registered charities (including eligible faith groups and sports clubs).
- Community Benefit Societies (CBS or Bencoms).
- Co-operative Societies.
- Development Trusts.
- Registered providers of social housing committed to delivering a community led project.
- Faith or environmental/social community groups with formal governance.
Note: Applications from eligible organisations exploring shared ownership models involving private companies may be eligible if the community retains meaningful control and receives a substantial share of the benefits. Groups should be able to show how community ownership, decision-making, and reinvestment are embedded in their model.
Private companies, informal networks, and individuals without a governance framework are not eligible.
Project types
We’re looking for projects that are:
- Community-led renewable or low-carbon energy initiatives.
- Designed to deliver tangible local benefits (e.g. lower bills, reinvestment in your community).
- Structured to promote long-term community ownership or control.
- Guided by community input in management and benefit distribution.
Examples of eligible project types include:
- Solar photovoltaic (PV) installations.
- Wind energy projects.
- Battery storage systems.
- Microgrids.
- Rural heat networks.
- Electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure.
- Building decarbonisation (projects that involve actual measures being installed, helping people to manage energy bills/debt advice etc not in scope).
Projects focused solely on fuel poverty alleviation are generally out of scope, unless they are delivered through renewable or low-carbon energy solutions that align with the aims above.
Development stage
We support groups at the early stages of their project journey. This includes if you’re:
- Conceptual or scoping-stage ideas.
- Exploring initial options for community energy projects.
- Initial community and stakeholder engagement.
- Groups exploring the headline viability of their project idea.
- Applicants preparing to apply for funding (e.g. Great British Energy Community Energy Fund stages 1 and 2).
Projects already funded or in the delivery phase (e.g. procurement, installation, operation) are not eligible.
We’re still learning where support is most needed at this early stage, so your feedback will help shape future priorities.
How we prioritise our support
We aim to support all those organisations that contact us that are eligible where funding is available. Where demand for our support goes beyond this, we will priories our support on the following basis.
Location
Projects must be located in England.
We prioritise support for groups that:
- Are based in areas with little existing community energy activity or support.
- Operate in areas of higher deprivation.
- Contribute to increasing diversity of those involved in community energy projects.
- Widen the participation of local people in their community energy project.
Groups in areas of higher deprivation
This includes organisations based in or serving communities among the most socio-economically disadvantaged in England, typically identified using the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD).
Key indicators include:
- Located in the top 10–20% most deprived areas.
- High levels of unemployment, low income, or poor health.
- Barriers to services or quality housing.
- Greater reliance on external support or infrastructure.
The IMD ranks small areas across England based on seven domains: income, employment, education, health, crime, housing access, and living environment.
Geographic and demographic diversity
We aim to broaden who takes part in community energy, and where it happens.
Geographic diversity includes projects in places where the community energy movement is less active. Community Energy England projects map.
Demographic diversity includes projects led by or engaging:
- Ethnically diverse communities.
- Low-income households.
- Young people.
- Disabled people.
- Migrant or refugee communities.
- Older people vulnerable to fuel poverty.
Examples include:
- A solar co-op in a former coalfield town.
- An energy efficiency initiative led by a South Asian community group.
- A VCSE organisation who had identified the potential for a community renewables project to support their work’.
Support needs fit
Our structured support is designed to help groups move forward confidently and effectively. We offer:
- Expert review of your project concept and viability.
- Guidance on writing high-quality funding applications.
- Help identifying key gaps (technical, governance, financial, stakeholder).
- Signposting to useful tools, templates, and professional services.
This is not a capital funding programme or an open-ended mentoring service.
Values and motivation
We’re looking to support groups that are curious, collaborative, and interested in long-term learning. For example, you:
- Have a small core team or steering group in place.
- Can commit time to workshops and sessions.
- Are open to feedback and collaboration.
You’ll also need to:
- Complete a baseline assessment (e.g. survey or diagnostic tool).
- Join structured one-to-one sessions, workshops, or learning activities.
- Share your experience through short surveys or interviews.