The South West of England has one of the UK's most vibrant community energy sectors. From Bristol's pioneering Bristol Energy Cooperative to Frome's Solar Streets initiative and Glastonbury's Avalon Community Energy, hundreds of homeowners and businesses across the region are generating, sharing, and investing in renewable energy through collective action. This guide explains the main groups, how they work, and how community energy complements your own solar installation.
Bristol Energy Cooperative (BWCE)
Bristol, Bath & West Community Energy (BWCE) is one of the largest and most established community energy groups in England. Founded in 2010, BWCE has raised over £10 million in community share offers to fund solar installations on schools, community buildings, and other properties across the West of England.
BWCE operates on a cooperative model: community members invest in share offers (typically £50–£50,000 per person), and returns from electricity generation are paid as interest — historical returns of 3–5% per year over 20-year project periods. BWCE has funded over 30 projects including solar on Bristol City Council buildings, schools, and community centres.
Bristol also participates in the City Leap Energy Partnership — a £1 billion public-private investment to decarbonise the city's buildings and energy system by 2030, aiming to install solar on 120,000 homes currently below EPC C.
Frome: FRECo and Solar Streets
Frome has developed a unique community energy ecosystem. The Frome Renewable Energy Co-operative (FRECo) has funded solar installations on local buildings, while the Solar Streets project has pioneered neighbourhood-level solar coordination — helping groups of households on the same street install solar simultaneously, reducing costs through shared scaffolding and collective negotiation. Frome has approximately 23% of its housing off the mains gas grid, driving strong local interest in solar as an alternative to oil and LPG.
Glastonbury: Avalon Community Energy
Avalon Community Energy serves the Glastonbury and Street area, where approximately 39.5% of constituency homes are off the mains gas grid — the highest proportion in the entire South West. Avalon has funded solar on local buildings and works to improve energy access for lower-income households. The Mendip Hills AONB also hosts community energy activity, with rural villages pursuing community-scale solar projects.
How Community Energy Complements Your Own Solar
- Financial diversification: Community shares provide returns from buildings you cannot install solar on (rented properties, flats, commercial buildings) while your own panels reduce home bills.
- Grid balancing: Community-scale solar helps balance local grid demand, making the electricity grid cleaner for everyone — including those who export via the Smart Export Guarantee.
- Neighbourhood coordination: Community energy groups often coordinate group installations that reduce costs for individual households.
D&R Energy actively supports community energy initiatives across the South West and regularly works alongside BWCE and other groups on funded installations. If you are interested in both a community energy investment and your own solar installation, call 0800 772 0758 or visit our residential solar page for a free quote.
