A Gloucestershire council is working with partners to help form a community energy group in the district.

Forest of Dean District Council is working with partners from the Centre for Sustainable Energy in Bristol (CSE) to deliver workshops to local residents, organisations and businesses to help form a community energy group in the district.

Cllr Paul Hiett, deputy leader of Forest of Dean District Council and cabinet member for climate emergency, said: "Forest Energy Community Initiative (FECI) will bring members of the community together to help fight the climate emergency across the Forest of Dean.

"It's been fantastic to see so many people excited by this project and looking to find out more as to how they can be involved and offer assistance.

"The drop-in events that we've held have been very popular and we're now taking the next steps in the project, working with partners at CSE to deliver workshops to plan how best to proceed with the community energy initiative and deliver the work to help make this project a success.

"I'd like to invite all interested residents to attend the next in-person workshop at Lydney Community Centre on Monday, February 27, to find out more about how they can help with the organisation of this fantastic project.

"I'd also like to thank all of the staff who have been involved so far and look forward to making a real difference in reducing carbon in the Forest."

In December 2021, Forest of Dean District Council was successful in securing funding as part of the AURORA Project to support community decarbonisation and to set-up the Forest Energy Community Initiative.

This group will see members of the council and partners at CSE work directly with members of the community to reduce their carbon emissions and to establish a community solar scheme.

As part of this, community-owned solar panels will be installed on the Freedom Leisure Centre and The Dean Academy School buildings in Lydney.

Over the next two years the partnership between Forest of Dean District Council, Freedom Leisure and The Dean Academy will be sharing data to set out how to decarbonise and reduce energy usage at the leisure facilities, reduce energy costs and in doing so, reduce the risks of high energy prices on the facilities.

There have been a number of drop-in events and workshops so far to discuss the project, with a further in-person workshop planned for Monday, February 27, between 6pm-8pm at Lydney Community Centre, Naas Lane, Lydney, GL15 5AT.

All interested residents and organisations are encouraged to attend and can register prior to the event at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/aurorafeci-workshop-3-organising-ourselves-tickets-517856832727 

The Forest Energy Community Initiative website can be found here: https://aurora-h2020.eu/fod-home/