Business in Southwell its time for solar.

Our local community organisation Sustainable Hockerton is hoping to expand. It has had a successful few year generating energy with the local communities support. It is run by local people that volunteer their time to direct the society.  The society has been operating since 2009 initially putting up a community owned wind turbine that you may have seen if you have been here as it operates on the outskirts of Hockerton. It has subsequently bought and installed three photovoltaic roof mounted systems helping local business to reduce their carbon impact and electricity bills. The income made by Sustainable Hockerton is generated from the sale of electricity and any profit made is distributed locally to support sustainable developments. This can cover many things from funding LED light bulbs to running educational workshops on saving energy or doing heat camera surveys of houses to improve their energy performance.  As an organisation they want to do more.

So what are they offering?

We want to help businesses in Southwell and the surrounding area to install photovoltaic panels on their roofs to reduce carbon impact, reduce energy bills and support the local community. To make a big impact they are particularly interested in helping business properties with large rooves and high electricity bills. If you run a business and are struggling with energy costs but don’t have the capital to buy photovoltaic panels, they might be able to Help. If your roof is suitable for panels, they could substantially reduce your costs and help the environment at the same time.

The ideal roof is south facing and made of steel. The ideal energy consumption pattern is one where it is mostly used during the day, so the output matches the supply. Sustainable Hockerton could manage the installation and local people are supported in their action to tackle climate change with the distribution of the profits, and educational/motivational information and workshops. The business also benefits with cheap green electricity and good integration with the local area.

If you think we could potentially work together on a roof project please contact Simon Tilley. Hockerton Housing Project manage the community renewables owned by Sustainable Hockerton.

There are many ways we can tackle the oncoming climate crises and ecological catastrophe and I would welcome other ideas and offers of help. Currently we are working on offering workshops on energy conservation and heat camera surveys to help spot energy leaks from your home.

Businesses in Southwell this is an opportunity for you to help save the planet and reduce your energy bills. Please contact Simon Tilley.

Dear Lord Callanan

I urge you most urgently to support these two amendments to the energy bill 237 and 238. I have been working in the community energy field for a long time and we need to reduce the market barriers for community groups and give them more certainty. From my experience they are key to achieving zero carbon as they not only keep the financial benefits of energy schemes’ local, they also encourage people to reduce their carbon impact. We have a lot to do to keep global warming below catastrophic levels.

Why have community energy schemes recently ground to a halt?

I believe this is largely due to current energy market and licensing rules. The recent Government interventions have been attempted but have failed to reverse the slump in new projects. The “Smart Export Guarantee”, which places a requirement on larger existing electricity suppliers to purchase power from small schemes, has no guaranteed purchase price or length of contract, making community investment almost impossible.

What should be done?

Support the amendments to the Energy Bill numbers 237 and 238.

1. A Community Electricity Export Guarantee: a right for sites that generate low carbon electricity with a capacity below 5 megawatts to export their electricity to an existing electricity supplier on fair terms (Amendment Number 237).

2. A Community Electricity Supplier Services Scheme: a requirement on existing larger suppliers to work with community schemes to sell the power they generate to local customers. Existing suppliers can charge a fee for doing this, but that fee must be reasonable (Amendment Number 238).

Here at Hockerton Housing Project we have helped many community groups in the past and if you would like to see some of these you would be most welcome.

Please see Sustainable Hockerton and its community wind turbine.

Best wishes

Simon

Mr S Tilley, CEng MEng MIMechE

Director, Hockerton Housing Project Trading Ltd

Sustainable living is important in improving the health of the community, reducing carbon emissions and lowering environmental impact. Communities can take certain steps towards living sustainably such as switching to green energy suppliers to meet their electricity needs.

Homes, businesses and communities at large have been investing more and more in ecologically sound and sustainable ways of generating the energy they use. This has resulted in increased use of green energy suppliers to power homes and businesses across the UK.

Why it’s important to live sustainably

Living sustainably plays a significant role in protecting the environment and reducing wastefulness. When communities live sustainably, they reduce their carbon footprint and the number of toxins released into the atmosphere. This improves air quality while minimising air pollution. Sustainable living also helps conserve natural resources, ensuring communities use resources efficiently. This means future generations get to have resources to use to meet their energy needs.

What’s the impact of switching to green energy suppliers?

Switching to a green energy plan means that your energy comes from a low-carbon footprint source like wind and solar. In fact, making the switch to a green energy supply can save at least a tonne of CO2 from penetrating the atmosphere every year. While this amount varies depending on the size and nature of a business or home, green energy sources have an extremely lower carbon footprint, guaranteeing lower environmental impact. If communities switch to green energy power, carbon emissions can reduce by as much as 70% by 2050.

Leading green energy suppliers in the UK

Finding a green energy tariff for your home or business has become easier. There’s a growing list of green energy suppliers offering 100% renewable electricity to meet client energy needs. These include:

• Good Energy Limited
• Ecotricity
• Click Energy
• Orbit Energy
• Pure Planet
• Octopus Energy
• Bulb

What’s the best green energy tariff?

There’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to green energy supply. What may work for your home or business may not work for another since energy needs vary from person to person. The best green energy tariff for you depends on what metrics are vital to you, such as pricing, guidance and support.

We have been customers of both Good Energy Limited and Ecotricity for many years. Therefore, we can highly recommend them when it comes to green and renewable electricity. Their services are exemplary, and you can rest easy that their energy comes from a renewable source. Below, you’ll find an overview of these two suppliers:

Good Energy Limited

Good Energy Limited is UK’s first ever green energy supply company, bringing renewable electricity to homes, businesses and communities. The company aims to help you live sustainably by providing clean, green energy for daily use.

Ecotricity

Ecotricity is a complete vegan energy supplier, providing 100% renewable electricity. The company makes green gas from agricultural waste, ensuring clients get renewable energy from completely plant-based sources.

Ready to get started?

Here is one way to do it. The experts at Switch Plan are happy to help you navigate which green energy suppliers suit your home or business more. Simply give them a call at 0330 818 6223 for guidance and support.

Too hot to cool – can nuclear cope?

Will nuclear power save the day? Should we include nuclear energy in our future energy mix? I read today that these power plants do not cope well in hot weather which rather implies with a warming world they are not part of the solution. The Good Energy Market Update reports as follows, in the August heatwave.

France is not fairing much better than neighbouring countries, as their supply of nuclear fleets decreases even further. France relies on nuclear power, but these facilities require water for cooling. The heatwaves have meant that water is too hot to be used for cooling, meaning some plants must limit their running time. This is a further blow to the UK which typically imports excess power from France.

In Hockerton we use wind turbines and photovoltaic power to generate our energy.

I am moving on from my lecturing duties at Nottingham Trent University. There is now an opportunity for someone to take on this fulfilling role and the universities advertisement for it is below. Click for further the vacancy details. Please contact HHP if you want to discuss my experience of the work. Simon Tilley.

Nottingham Trent University

Hourly Paid Lecturer in Renewable Energy Technologies

Brackenhurst Campus

Job reference: 011117

Location: Brackenhurst Campus

Closing date: 11/12/2022

Salary : See special conditions

Employment type: Hourly paid/casual staff

Team: Environmental Science

School / Directorate : School of Animal Rural & Environmental Sciences

Get directions

Special Conditions: £44.45 per direct teaching hour. This includes the following elements: teaching, preparation and marking of the scheduled programme of work. (A flat rate of £17.78 will be paid for completing one of the above elements of the schedule.)

The School of Animal, Rural and Environmental Sciences is an exciting multi-disciplinary environment for learning, teaching and research. We are seeking hourly paid lecturers for a range of courses within the Environmental Science Department.  Our portfolio of undergraduate and postgraduate courses comprises subjects such as Horticulture, Geography, Conservation, Food Science and Environmental Science.

We are seeking to appoint an Hourly Paid Lecturer in the following area:

Renewable energy and energy policy

In addition to appropriate knowledge and experience, you should possess excellent communication and presentation skills and a willingness to contribute flexibly to teaching and associated duties on undergraduate courses in this area.

We need skilled lecturers to support students through delivery of a range of courses. You will work under the direction of the Head of Department and Course Leaders to deliver high quality teaching and learning to undergraduate students. Duties will include preparation, delivery and marking of work. You will be expected to deliver lectures and practical sessions, seminars and tutorials and may be asked to contribute to other areas of the School’s activities.

You will be able to demonstrate excellent interpersonal skills and have the ability to communicate ideas of a complex or technical nature to students effectively using a variety of teaching methods, have detailed knowledge of the particular subject area through significant teaching, and / or relevant industry experience.

If you have any specific queries in relation to these positions, please contact: Julia Davies 0115 848 5242

Interviews: Given the nature of these roles, interviews will take place throughout the year. The Head of Department or nominated colleague will be in touch following the submission of your application.

​​​​​​​Please note this role does not meet the UK Border Agency requirements for sponsorship. The University is unable to apply for sponsorship for any applicant not eligible to work in the UK and therefore we cannot progress applications from candidates who require sponsorship under the Points Based Immigration System.

Renewable Energy HPL JD & PS