UK100 has described the UK Government’s Local Power Plan as a “bold, significant step forward” for community energy.
Responding to the news of the Plan, the cross-party network of local authorities, which works together to tackle climate change, has also called for stronger commitments to include all parts of the country and all tiers of local government in delivery.
The Plan represents the “biggest ever funding for municipal and community energy”, it said, and includes several long-standing UK100 asks: dedicated capacity building support for local authorities, grid connections and regulatory reform, partnership grants enabling councils to collaborate with community energy organisations, and a commitment to shared ownership models that keep benefits local.
UK100 members including Bristol, Cambridgeshire, Southwark, Essex and Leicestershire, are already developing community energy projects and local area energy plans that could form a ready-made pipeline for the Plan’s Expression of Interest process.
Research shows that locally planned approaches could reduce costs while maximising bill savings compared to national top-down approaches.
UK100 is calling on the government and GB Energy to:
- Work with us and the sector to ensure the Local Power Plan explicitly includes and resource all tiers of local government, not just mayors and strategic authorities.
- Ensure funding is allocated through non-competitive, accessible routes so that all local authorities can plan and deliver with confidence — not just those with the capacity to win in short term, competitive bids.
- Embed Local Area Energy Plans, supported by DNOs, within the Plan and Regional Energy Strategic Plans, backed by a national framework and non-competitive funding.
- Develop community benefit policies in partnership with local authorities — with communities, not to communities.
- Integrate the Local Power Plan with the Warm Homes Plan for a joined-up approach to energy and housing.
- Establish forums where local authorities and communities can shape GB Energy’s strategy from the outset, not simply respond to it.
UK100 is encouraging members to come forward with community energy project ideas for the Plan’s Expression of Interest process – and is offering support through its research, membership capacity building and advocacy programmes.
Christopher Hammond, Chief Executive of UK100, said:
“Local energy is the best energy, especially when as much of the benefit can be retained by those communities that host the infrastructure. We welcome this bold, significant step forward. For years, UK100 members have made the case that community energy works best when local authorities are empowered to lead, and much of the Local Power Plan reflects the importance of supporting that leadership. The capacity building commitment is a particular win, and the inclusion of all three authority types, mayoral, combined and local, is crucial to deliver.
“But not everywhere has a mayor. So if this Plan is to succeed, Ministers and GB Energy must ensure that district, county and unitary councils are genuinely at the table, not sidelined while only strategic authorities take the lead. Our members, many of them district and county councils, represent over 37 million people across the UK, and they are ready to deliver, not be unnecessarily held back. It’s disappointing that the battle for Local Area Energy Planning has been overlooked, nevertheless, our members will welcome the long-term funding certainty and the trust to get on with the job.”
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