SSCE Community Fund

The SSCE Community Fund is supported by Southern Staffordshire Community Energy Limited (SSCE), a social enterprise founded in 2011 that operates as a community benefit society. SSCE owns solar photovoltaic panel installations on community buildings in Whittington and at University Hospital of North Midlands Trust (UHNM). The surplus from these installations funds two community funds, with the General Community Fund supporting projects in Lichfield District that address carbon reduction, energy savings, and wider sustainability issues. For 2019, the fund has a total value of £9,000 and provides grants to improve energy efficiency and reduce the carbon footprint of community buildings in the Lichfield district, as well as to facilitate environmental projects run by local community organisations. Grants support energy audits for buildings, measures contributing to renewable energy installation or improving energy efficiency, and capital or revenue costs of other environmental projects. The maximum grant award is £2,000 per project. Eligible projects include renewable energy installations (solar panels, heat pumps, biomass boilers), energy efficiency measures (insulation, double glazing, efficient boilers), and other environmental projects addressing biodiversity, local food production, sustainable transport, and waste management. Applicants can be constituted community groups, voluntary groups, registered charities, social enterprises, or owners/leaseholders of community buildings in the Cannock Chase or Lichfield districts. Projects must start on or after 1st March 2019 and be complete by 31st December 2019.