Do you want to help people save on their energy bills and have warmer, healthier homes next winter? Are you worried about climate change and want to do something positive to help your community reduce carbon emissions?
Greensand Community Energy, working together with Buzz Community Energy and River Ivel Community Energy run an Energy Champions scheme across Bedfordshire. As an Energy Champion, you will engage with people through face-to-face events and advice clinics in their local communities and through home visits.
You will be providing people with independent, reliable advice on making choices to save energy at home. You will have taken advantage of our fully funded training programme and you will be supported by an Energy Champion Coordinator and your local Community Energy Group.
These are voluntary roles, very flexible on time commitment, and there are additional volunteering opportunities supporting our trained Energy Champions.
We are able to offer our Energy Champions free training and expenses and supporting materials from grant funding through Community Energy Pathways, as part of their commitment to energy saving and grid decarbonisation. A part-time paid role as Energy Champion Coordinator is also funded through this grant.
You will be giving energy efficiency advice to people in your community by:
● attending energy efficiency events and advice clinics, and possibly running your own events with support.
● running stalls at other local events
● delivering home visits to give energy advice directly to householders
You will be talking with householders and listening to their situations, so that you can:
● suggest behaviour changes and minor home improvements to reduce energy consumption and save money
● provide information on more significant home improvements that will reduce and decarbonise energy use at home.
● provide appropriate information on alternative ways of powering and heating their homes.
● You will have at least basic literacy, numeracy and computer skills.
● You will have a good general understanding of the need for decarbonisation, and a commitment to no-one being left behind in that transition.
● You will be able to talk to members of the public sympathetically and listen well to deliver appropriate advice.
● You will enjoy and be confident talking with people and sharing energy-saving advice at events in your community and in their own homes.
● You will need to be self-motivated and organised, to set up information stalls and stands, prepare talks and presentations, keep appointments and maintain good records of your engagements and conversations.
Before starting as an Energy Champion, you will have completed the NEA Level 3 course in Energy Awareness online and attended one day in-person training session:
● You will have gained understanding of energy consumption and saving possibilities in the home, and have the knowledge required to deliver energy advice to householders.
● You will have been trained to give advice in a way that is accessible to householders
● You will have been prepared to support vulnerable and non-digital people with advice.
That’s really up to you – Energy Champions can commit to as many events/visits/presentations as they feel they can offer. Some of these sessions will be in the evening or weekends. It is helpful to have flexibility to work with other Energy Champions and to respond to householder availability.
To be an Energy Champion, you will need to complete the NEA Level 3 course in Energy Awareness. The course takes 20 hours with 9 hours assessment, to be completed over an 8 week period from commencement.
This is followed by a one day in-person training session on engaging with the public.
This will be held periodically. Completing this in-person training session is a requirement of the scheme.
All this training is fully funded and is an excellent starting point for employment in the energy advice sector.
You will be expected to keep a record of the number of conversations you have had, home visits undertaken, presentations given and audience numbers. This is not a sales role but you will be contributing to group targets, so good record keeping is key. As it is a grant funded role, these records are required to show that the grant funds have been properly spent.
The Energy Champion Scheme is across Bedfordshire, but we will be partnering Energy Champions with their local Community Energy Group so that most engagement will be local to you. Having your own transport is helpful but not essential if other team members can assist.
Email hello@greensandenergy.org to register your interest. Please let us know:
● Your name, and preferred contact method
● Whether you are interested in the Energy Champion volunteer role, support volunteer role.
● Whether you would prefer to be based in the Ampthill/Flitwick, Leighton/Linslade or Biggleswade/Potton/Sandy/Stotfold/Langford area.
Some detail about any prior relevant experience and your reasons for wanting to be an Energy Champion are helpful too.
You are welcome to ask any questions or request additional information about the roles. We’ll respond as soon as we can with some suggestions for an initial meet up for further discussion.
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