Partnerships and Collaborations
Community energy relies on partnerships and collaboration: with host sites such as schools, but also with local authorities, land or site owners, and other community energy groups. The Schools' Energy Co-op has built successful relationships over the years with several public and private partners.
London Boroughs
Much of the co-op’s work is delivered in partnership with local energy or environmental organisations, which represent the co-op locally and engage with schools in their area. This approach has been particularly successful in Ealing, West London, where the co-op’s partnership with Ealing Transition has delivered solar panel installations on 19 schools so far. Ealing Transition have also inspired and supported the co-op’s work in other London boroughs including Harrow and Wandsworth.
Other Community Energy Groups
In 2019, the co-op partnered with Salisbury Community Energy, bringing together expertise and local knowledge to deliver 5 solar PV installations in Salisbury and Wiltshire. This included 93 panels on Salisbury Cathedral, and a huge array across the Wiltshire College campuses.
Multi-Academy Trusts
Working with a multi-academy trust (MAT) brings a useful degree of scale to community energy projects. When a MAT spans multiple schools, the foundational work of building the relationship, agreeing terms, and designing the energy model only needs to be done once. For trusts, it also means a consistent approach to solar energy across their entire estate. Schools' Energy Co-op has worked with several MATs including in Bournemouth and Birmingham.