The Repowered Community is Repowering London’s clean energy neighbourhood model. It strengthens communities by delivering clean energy hand in hand with long-term local services and benefits. One year into our first demonstrator programme, Repowered Community Newham, we wanted to share what we have learned. When it comes to innovation there is always a learning curve. Here are our three key takeaways from this year.
Our retrofit for blocks of flats offering provides local people with a roadmap to warmer homes
1. We've pinpointed what will have the biggest impact
We’ve learned that the biggest way that we can help households save money is to focus our efforts on heat supply and retrofit, rather than solar electricity supply. That’s because the use of solar energy on domestic buildings can be reliant on the time of day you use that energy, and the energy is spread more thinly across households, resulting in less savings on bills. On the other hand, heat networks reduce costs by storing energy, giving communities the option to use heat when they want it. We aim to use our over 10 years of experience in solar and electricity to inform this work. That means, powering the heat systems with electricity generated on local community buildings to create a robust, cost-efficient energy supply.
2. Meaningful community engagement takes time and effort
Developing Repowered Community Newham has reminded us that participatory governance is powerful — but only if it is done meaningfully.
For example, putting together a community steering group means that people can help shape the project. But it must be done in a way that is genuinely accessible and inclusive. And this means investing significant time, facilitation, and co-ordination to make sure that all participants can engage fully in complex technical discussions. Accessibility is not optional; it’s a core requirement of participation. That means we need to accommodate needs such as British Sign Language interpretation, and other adjustments, and dedicate planning time to remove barriers.
Building real trust, sustaining participation, and reaching new audiences takes consistent effort over time. But it is essential for ensuring that community voices are properly embedded in decisions and that participation is open to all.
3. Working with complexity deserves attention
Key to our learning is that realistic time is needed to accommodate working with multiple partners. In some cases, this has meant deliberately slowing or rescheduling activity to ensure it is done well rather than delivering at pace at the expense of depth.
What is clear is that innovation and complexity deserves attention, particularly because it ensures the communities we work with can benefit, contribute and make an impact in their own neighbourhoods.
Our partnerships are key to building the framework for a Repowered Community
The Repowered Community Newham demonstrator is the first of its kind. Improving and enhancing the programme wherever possible helps set the tone for future versions of it. We will use our findings to create a replicable toolkit to access all the key insights and frameworks to create a Repowered Community. Repowering London’s mission is for every town and city in the UK can be powered by community energy by 2030, and our neighbourhood energy model gives communities the seeds to grow that.
Repowered Community Newham is funded by The National Lottery Community Fund.
To learn more about Repowered Community Newham you can read our latest blog articles below
Building a greener brighter future in Newham – one year in the making
The impact of Repowering London’s new local energy neighbourhood model