Eco group handed £61k boost (From Wiltshire Times)

Eco group handed £61k boost

12:00pm Sunday 29th January 2012 in Bradford

Climate Friendly Bradford on Avon is rejoicing after getting £61,725 of Government money to spend on community energy efficiency projects.

The group was awarded the money by the Department for Energy and Climate Change, as part of the new Local Energy Assessment Fund.

It now plans to help the residents of Bradford on Avon and the surrounding area by carrying out energy assessments on homes and community buildings.

Jane Laurie, of Climate Friendly Bradford on Avon, said: “It is fantastic that we have been given these funds.

“They will allow us to lay the foundations for the group’s future and help us decide where we need to focus our efforts.”

The group, which aims to make Bradford on Avon carbon neutral by 2050, has a deadline of March, 31 for the Government’s money to be used.

It plans to spend it in a variety of ways. One will be to buy a thermal imaging camera for use on 1,000 houses, showing where heat is escaping from properties.

There will be feedback sessions to show households how to improve the heat-loss problem.

The group will also carry out free energy assessments for people willing to have their neighbours join them for the feedback sessions.

Some of the funds will go towards the installation of solid wall insulation in community buildings, where cavity wall installation is impossible.

Ms Laurie said: “This helps us take yet another practical step towards our goal of a low carbon future and is a tribute to all Climate Friendly Bradford’s hard work over the past few years.

“This period is very important to the future of the group and is a really exciting time, although there is, of course, some pressure to use the funds before the end of March deadline.”

For more information about the action group, visit its website at www.climatefriendlybradfordon avon.co.uk or call the group on 07507 782523.