BeGreen can apply for a free appliance on your behalf .Scottish Hydro can only supply one appliance so it’s important that  you choose the appliance that will benefit you most. Scottish Hydro will take away your old appliance and install your new one.

You do not have to be a Scottish Hydro customer to be eligible.To qualify your appliance must be 10+ years old or broken and you are in receipt of one of Scottish Hydro’s qualifying benefits .To find out more contact us at the BeGreen shop.

Energy Saving Trust  latest advice for householders is :

Regardless of what some installers may say there is no guarantee that householders will get the higher (43.3p/kWh) rate if they install between 12 Dec 2011 and 3 March 2012. Customers who install on the assumption of the higher rate do so at their own risk.

• The actual tariff applied to installations between 12 Dec 2011 and 3 March 2012 won’t be confirmed until the legal process has been completed. The Government has 28 days from the judgment to lodge an appeal with the Supreme Court.
• Householders should plan on the basis that at the very least they will get 21p/kWh.
• Householders installing after 3 March 2012 will get 21p/kWh though, for installations with an eligibility date after 1 April 2012, it is likely there will be a condition for energy saving measures.

For the latest news  on the Government FITs go to  Energy Saving Trust  web site.

The project awarded £33,352 assisting householders make their homes more energy efficient. Chart 2 provides a breakdown of the type of energy measures that were undertaken.

Belhaven Parish Church halls

Belhaven Church halls case study  Belhaven church was awarded a BeGreen grant of £4,695  to improve the energy efficiency of it’s  three community halls. Energy measures included loft insulation , draught proofing , secondary glazing and heating upgrade .

If you are  a home owner or private tenant aged 60 or over, or 50+ with a disability  and live in the Dunbar & East Linton ward you might be interested in our ” 3 Steps to a Warmer Home” initiative with East Lothian Care & Repair Small Repairs Service . Working in  partnership  Care & Repair  and BeGreen are able to offer Care & Repair clients a range of  

Step 1  £10 off draught proofing and  fitted free  by the Small Repairs Service ;

Step 2 £100 of materials for works/repairs to make your home more energy efficient, carried out free of charge  by  the Small Repairs Service;

Step 3 FREE home energy efficiency audits and  advice on how to deal with high fuel bills. Also grants to make your home more energy efficient .E.g.Up to  £500 if you are 65+ or on a qualifying benefit and  up to £1,000 if you  have a child under 16.

To find out more see our  3 steps to a warmer home poster.

If you install solar PV and your  FITs application is received by your FIT supplier (also known as FIT Licensee) on or after 12 December 2011, you could be affected by the proposals.

Please note that these proposals are currently under consultation and are
therefore not final. However, the Energy Saving Trust  recommend customers should use the figures  in the consultation if they are planning to install after 12 December 2011. Only  solar PV systems are covered by the UK Government’s current FITs consultation.
Other FIT-eligible technologies will be considered as part of the second phase
of the comprehensive review due to be published shortly. For more information see :

Energy Saving Trust FIT Review

The community of Stenton is committed to reducing its carbon footprint, so in 2009 an energy audit was facilitated by BeGreen Dunbar, on behalf of the Energy Saving Trust. This demonstrated that the hall, built in 1913, of stone, with no insulation and heated by electricity, was both wasteful and expensive to heat.

In November 2010 Stenton Community Association set up a small sub- group to co-ordinate an improvement programme for the village hall and grant applications to fund the project work.

The object of the project was to upgrade the property by installing roof insulation, secondary double-glazing and draught proofing and the installation of Solar PV panels to generate green electricity and to produce an income to further upgrade the property.

The sub-committee set themselves a target of 6-7 weeks to obtain quotations and to gather the necessary information for the various grant applications. The group were grateful to all who tendered, and for the assistance and encouragement of the local community.

Following discussions with East Lothian Planning Department, the group was advised that planning permission would be required and an application was made. A report from a Structural Engineer concerning the construction and stability of the roof was also required before the PV panels could be installed.

Total project costs £23,389. By February 2011 the funding was in place. £16,400 grant from Viridor; £4,516 from BeGreen Dunbar and £2,473 East Lothian Council.

Before any construction work took place, one of the directors of the P.V company attended an open meeting in the village to give information and to answer questions; this was found to be very helpful. In June 2011 the Solar PV panels were installed, followed by the insulation, double glazing and draught proofing.

Already in the three months following we have accrued an income of approximately £600 from our energy company. As part of the Project a display board was situated near the Hall entrance. This shows the energy being generated and the amount of CO2 saved on a daily and cumulative basis; this has proved to be of much interest to children and adults alike. It is perhaps, no coincidence that around 8-10 householders in the village are currently negotiating plans to install PV panels on their own homes.

For further information about Stenton Village hall’s project contact:

hulme.bailey@btinternet.com

In a 50 minute one-to-one session with an instructor you could learn how to save 2 month’s worth of fuel a year.

To book your place call 0800-512-012 or email energyadvice@changeworks.org.uk