In late September 2026, Great British Energy (GBE) said it wanted to “kick start a community power revolution” by rolling out the first wave of its Local Power Plan, with £30m in funding. What does this all mean? Let’s take a look!
This £30m is the first round of the £1bn Local Power Plan announced by Ed Milliband earlier this year, to “grow local and community-owned clean energy across the UK”.
Community energy means clean generation that reduces carbon emissions and is owned by, and benefits, the local community. You can read more about it here.
The aim of the Local Power Plan is to support over 1,000 local and community-led clean energy projects, encouraging community energy groups and local authorities to progress their own local plans including solar and storage on local buildings.
The funding
This first £30 million of funding is made up of:
- The GBE Community Fund (£20m)
This fund is set aside for community energy groups in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It offers up to £40,000, £100,000 or £3 million, depending on the project stage (Feasibility, Development, or Capital). It covers clean energy technologies including, solar, storage and wind, with the application deadline of 12 November 2026 at 23:55.
- The new GBE Partnerships Grant for local authorities actively collaborating with their community organisations (£5m),
This is set aside for local authorities in England, currently working with a Community Energy Group, or wanting to work with one, and offers up to £40,000 or £100,000, depending on the stage. It covers clean energy technologies including, solar, storage and wind, with the application deadline of 12 November 2026 at 23:55.
- Funding for the Scottish government (£1.8m)
- Funding for advice services that support local groups with the development of community energy initiatives, with up to £2.9m across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The reaction
GBE CEO Dan McGrail said: “Great British Energy is continuing to put communities at the heart of the clean energy transition with the GBE Community Fund and Partnerships Grant. Our vision is that every community should have the chance to build and own its own renewable energy. These grants will give community organisations and local authorities the practical support they need to get clean energy projects off the ground – lowering bills, supporting jobs and putting the benefits from energy into local hands.”
For our part, our Joju team has supported community energy from the very beginning. We installed the first community energy project in Oxford back in 2008 and have designed, developed and installed hundreds more since. Our Co-founder and CEO, Joe Michaels, had this to say about the latest funding:
“Anything that helps grow community-owned renewables is a positive step. Renewable energy is among the cheapest and cleanest sources of power, and partnerships between community groups, landlords and building owners can create benefits for everyone. Buildings gain access to cheaper, cleaner electricity without upfront capital costs, while communities gain a stake in their local energy system and investors receive fair returns. The benefits extend to wider society too, through a cleaner energy system and lower carbon emissions”.
Here to help
Our team has close relationships with Community Energy Groups across the country and we are certainly here to support with funding applications and advice.
If you are a community energy organisation and would like to chat with one of our team, please get in touch and we look forward to the further expansion of community energy: reducing emissions, cutting bills and reinvesting profits to benefit more local areas.
Further Reading
- Read more about how we support Community Energy projects
- Discover more about solar schools
- Take a look at some of our Community Energy case studies
