Rural Community Energy Fund

The Rural Community Energy Fund (RCEF) is now available to rural communities in England who are considering a renewable energy project. Stage 1 provides grant funding of up to £20,000 to fund investigating viability. Stage 2 provides an unsecured loan of up to £130,000 to develop a robust business case and planning application. The funder, WRAP, have revealed that some early applications to the scheme have not shown that there has been engagement with the wider community about the proposed project. Consulting the community is therefore a critical part of the application.