M&S commits £400,000 to community energy schemes

The energy arm of UK retail giant Marks & Spencer has awarded £400,000 in funding to community energy schemes across the UK.

The M&S Community Energy Fund, set up in July this year, received 246 applications for the money.

The scheme invited non-profit organisations such as sports clubs, schools and local libraries to set up renewable energy projects in their local community.

132 shortlisted applications were put to a public vote, and after 51,000 votes were cast, 26 prize winners have been awarded money to put their schemes into action.

"It was brilliant to see communities coming together in support of renewable energy projects in their area," said Jonathan Hazeldine, head of M&S Energy, in a statement.

Hazeldine added: "We have a very worthy list of 26 winners from a whole range of projects which all exemplify the innovative approach communities across the UK are taking to generating their own energy."

Hartlepool Community Solar for Schools won £40,000 to support its efforts to supply 37 schools and colleges in Hartlepool with solar energy, while Berkshire-based youth charity Just Around the Corner won the £20,000 prize to install solar panels on its activity site and stables.

An additional nineteen regional vote winners will receive £12,500 for their projects.

A further five projects chosen by a panel of judges including former Secretary of State for Energy Ed Davey were awarded up to £12,500 each.

The first judges' prize went to fit solar panels on Harry's Hydrotherapy Pool, a centre which aims to relieve sickness and improve quality of life for those with sensory, learning or profound multiple difficulties.

The launch of the M&S Community Energy Fund in July coincided with M&S Energy’s announcement that it now supplies 100 per cent of its electricity from renewable sources, generated from 46 hydro power stations in Scotland.

Hazeldine said: “To mark M&S Energy’s electricity going 100 per cent green, we want to help more communities in the UK generate renewable energy and become environmentally and financially sustainable.”

This comes as a part of M&S’s Plan A, the retailer’s long-term sustainability plan.

So far the scheme has achieved carbon neutrality across M&S’s UK activities, making it the only major retailer in the world to have carbon-neutral operations.

M&S head of Global Plan A Delivery Adam Elman said one of the firm’s main aims was making Plan A more localised and relevant to communities: “The M&S Community Energy Fund gets right to the heart of supporting our communities and provides a great opportunity for local green leaders to engage their community in the environmental and social benefits of renewable energy.”

In May this year the UK household name also committed to 100 per cent renewable energy by joining the RE100 initiative, a scheme that helps major companies such as Nike and Walmart source their energy from 100 per cent renewable sources.