Mayor of Nøtterøy, Norway sends his congratulations

We've had a lovely letter of congratulations on our 10 year anniversary from Mayor Roar Jonstang and The Climate Advisory Committee in Nøtterøy, Norway. Here is a short extract..

..."We were therefore delighted that Garry Charnock, Roy Alexander and Kate Harrison agreed to pay us a visit in October 2009. In the course of three hectic days the advisory council, the municipal administration, neighboring municipalities, residents' associations, businesses and schools had the opportunity to hear about the enormous engagement in Ashton Hayes regarding climate matters.

The visit inspired, amongst other, the establishment of a climate activist group in the small village of Torød (around 1000 inhabitants) which has since held a wide range of climate-related activities.

In November 2010 it was time for a reciprocal visit. The Climate Advisory Council, represented by Janet Gullvåg, and journalists from the local newspaper spent three eventful days in Ashton Hayes where they were well received by Roy Alexander and Kate Harrison. Numerous planned visits were paid to Sustainable Blacon, Ashton Hayes Primary School, the Parish Church and the village shop, just to name a few"...

Read the full letter here

Movie premiere on Thursday 28 January at 7pm - Primary school

End of decade celebrations

28 January 2016: End of Decade celebrations with the launch and world premiere of our new film 'Our footprint, our journey' that examines the past decade of the Going Carbon Neutral Project through the eyes of residents. Primary School 7pm. The Mayor and Mayoress of Chester will open the event.

More solar panels for the school plus end of decade celebrations for GCN

Many thanks to all those who completed our 'end of decade' survey in May/June. A quarter of village households took part, providing us with a lot of very useful information. Data analysis is well under way and we will publish the results in November as a report to the Parish Council and as a poster. We will also provide individual feedback to each participating household. 

We are also pleased to report that Ashton Hayes Community Energy (AHCEC) is now in the position to invest the money earned so far from Feed-in Tariffs, talks and village visits in more solar PV for the school. While we await the outcome of negotiations with ScottishPower about the grid connection we have taken advantage of the opportunity to pre-register with Ofgem to get a guaranteed tariff for the next 12 months. This required an Energy Performance Certificate for the school, which the energy company has funded.

To celebrate a decade of the Going Carbon Neutral Project we will hold an event on Thursday 28th January at the school. We plan to show a new film that looks back on 10 years of the project, provide highlights from our survey findings and outline our future plans. All are invited and further details will be published later in the year.

Interest in our project beyond the village remains high and Roy Alexander was invited to share what we have learned at three events during Community Energy Fortnight; as a panel member for a Community Energy Question Time event at CWaC HQ in Chester, as a speaker at the Milesecure2050 (a European research project examining community sustainability) conference in Salford and as a workshop contributor at an event at Nesta in London examining the support needs of community projects. Garry Charnock also sits on the Department of Energy & Climate Change Community Energy Contact Group and ensures our views are heard at the highest levels of Government.

Follow us on Twitter @ashtonhayesCEC.

Free training on community projects

For anyone who would be interested in getting involved in existing or forthcoming community projects but would like more knowledge or confidence. Here is a 3 day course at Trafford Hall. It is residential but you don't have to stay if you live nearby. Ashton Hayes & Mouldsworth Community Shop WILL PAY THE FEES for this course if you live in Ashton, Mouldsworth or Horton cum Peel and are 16 or over. (no upper age limit!).
Please contact the shop before making your application.

The dates are 18th - 20th AUGUST so don't delay!

Setting up a Project
18-20 August 2015

Do you want to set up a project that will have a positive impact within you community?

‘Setting Up A Project’ training is interactive and engaging, by using exercises, group work tasks and toolkits that encourages the development of ideas and strategies for initial project planning to make your project a success.

The three day training provides the opportunity for you to:

Find the right project
Develop mapping support tools
Understand the benefits of consultation and wider community involvement
How to sustain your project
Develop initial start-up project plans
Have access to a range of planning toolkits
Understand funding sources and support networks
Marketing & promotion strategies

Cost to community volunteers: £50 inc VAT for the first delegate from any group. £20 inc VAT per person for subsequent bookings through the same group on the same course.

This price not only includes the training but also all meals and refreshments during your stay and accommodation for the duration of the course in one of our en-suite bedrooms at Trafford Hall.

More on our village Facebook site here