Derbyshire Dales group gets £50K council grant for renewable energy projects

The Derbyshire Dales Community Energy (DDCE) community benefit society has secured a £50,000 grant from the county council to employ a full-time member of staff to coordinate an ever-growing slate of projects in the district and beyond.

The first two Matlock sites are expected to come online in 2023, with Highfields School and Twiggs, on Bakewell Road, having already passed feasibility assessments with a view to delivering 220 kilowatts of capacity, equivalent to around 25 households.

Steve Martin, who chairs the DDCE board, said: “The plan is to take community energy in Derbyshire to the next level by installing one megawatt of solar photovoltaics (PV) in up to nine or ten different locations.

“This will not only provide a significant amount of renewable energy, but also will make DDCE more resilient to the potential risks associated with small scale solar PV.”

He added: “We also believe this will help safeguard the future energy security of our schools and other community buildings as well as key businesses in Derbyshire.”

If all goes to plan DDCE expects to release its first shares for community investors later this autumn to fund the first two installations, guided by Shropshire cooperative Sharenergy, which has raised more than £20million in share offers linked to similar initiatives all over the UK.

Along with those sites, DDCE has just gone out to tender to local and regional solar installers for projects at Hurst Farm Social Club, John Palin Fresh Produce in Tansley, Peak Converters in Wirksworth and Milner Off-Road in Darley Dale.

The DDCE community hub coordinator will support all those plans, plus programmes led by the Arkwright Society at Cromford Mills, Hope Valley Community Energy, solar electric vehicle charging in Belper, and a heat network in Brassington.

All were backed by the Government’s now-closed Rural Community Energy Fund, with grants of up to £100,000 for development work.

Steve said: “There are a growing number of sites that could potentially work well, but they need further analysis and commitment from their owners and trustees.

“One of the main factors is that a good solar site doesn’t only need roof space. For a community project to be financially viable it's important that a large portion of the energy is also consumed on site.”

Other projects at an earlier stage include hydropower schemes in Belper and Darley Abbey – raising the prospect of the Derwent Valley harnessing the power of the river just as the industrial pioneers did in the 18th century.

For all the latest updates, go to derbyshiredalesenergy.org.uk.

Support your Derbyshire Times by becoming a digital subscriber. You will see 70 per cent fewer ads on stories, meaning faster load times and an overall enhanced user experience. Click here to subscribe.