May Newsletter 2025

Quarterly update on Heart of England Community Energy’s solar performance and community impact

1. Performance Update

We are pleased to report that generation for the first quarter of 2025 was 14% above P50 projections, driven by exceptionally strong solar performance in March. According to the Met Office, March was the sunniest in England since records began in 1910, significantly boosting output. As a result, March generation exceeded P50 expectations by 24%, supported by a 21% increase in solar irradiance over projected levels.

Total Q1 generation across our three sites (Leys, Willows and Poplars) reached 2,588,795 MWh and there were no significant generation-impacting issues reported. Looking ahead, the recent spell of sunshine is encouraging and we remain confident that generation will stay strong. HECE continues to be in a stable and strong financial position.

2. Community Benefit

Act on Energy and supporting vulnerable households

Since December, HECE has provided £18,000 to Act on Energy as they help vulnerable families across the Stratford and Warwick districts. This funding is making a real difference by helping households with things like fuel payment credits, prepayment meter vouchers and clearing small energy debts.

They’re also providing simple energy-saving measures to keep homes warmer and help reduce bills over time. The support offers both immediate relief and lasting benefits.

HECE is proud to provide financial support to Act on Energy and help facilitate the vital work they do to bring practical help to those who need it most in our communities.

Funding for the Warwickshire Reminiscence Action Project

We’re delighted to announce that the board has awarded a £20,000 grant to support the Warwickshire Reminiscence Action Project (WRAP) over the coming year. This funding will help cover staff costs for the Charity Manager and Office Manager, enabling WRAP to expand its work with people living with dementia and their carers in South Warwickshire.

These include the Bishopton Dementia Café, the Looking After a Loved One carer support programme and their Memory Box loan scheme. The grant will be issued in two instalments: 50% at the outset and the remaining 50% following a successful six-month review.

Crafty Lunch Club service expansion funding approved

We have approved a £5,000 grant to support the expansion of Crafty Lunch Club, a successful CIC focused on providing inclusive, social opportunities for disabled adults and their carers. The club currently runs a well-attended weekly group and HECE previously funded part of this programme.

This new funding will enable the group to expand their offering to include:

A monthly community café: Designed to offer volunteering opportunities for disabled adults while promoting wider community integration and disability awareness. The café will also provide affordable food, supported by a token scheme to ensure accessibility for those in need.

Monthly social events: Activities such as discos, karaoke nights and bingo will create regular opportunities for socialising and inclusive engagement.

See last year’s impact on our website

3. Carbon Reduction

Solar Soft Loan Scheme kicks off with Warwick District Council

We’re working with Warwick District Council to install solar panels on several council-owned buildings through our Solar Soft Loan model, with installations planned across 2025. This will deliver meaningful carbon savings and lower energy costs.

Solar Soft Loans Explainer: Solar soft loans enable schools, community organisations and local councils to invest in rooftop solar panels or energy-saving measures without any upfront costs, roof leases, or long-term power purchase commitments.

HECE pays for the system and the council will own the panels from day one, benefiting immediately from lower bills and income from any surplus electricity exported to the grid. Repayments are based on 50% of actual annual savings, after maintenance costs. If savings are lower than expected (due to reduced energy use, falling power prices, or less sunlight) the repayments reduce accordingly, meaning the loan will be repaid over a longer period. Any outstanding balance after 20 years will be written off.

HECE recoups the loan over time to re-invest into a local low carbon revolving loan fund to support more community projects. We can only do this as our source of funds is surplus income from our big solar farm at Drayton Manor!

Find out more about Solar Soft Loans

4. News

Invitation to HECE’s Annual General Meeting

Date: Tuesday 30th June 2025

Time: 7:00 – 9:00 PM

Location: Online via Zoom

We’ll be sending out the Zoom link and materials closer to the date. This is a great opportunity to hear about the impact your investment has made over the past year, get updates on current projects and learn more about our plans for the future!

HECE attends ‘Empowering A More Sustainable Stratford’

John Stott, Chair of HECE, shared his thoughts on a recent event where HECE hosted a stall: “We were able to tell people about HECE, what we do, the charities we are supporting and the carbon saving loan scheme we offer.” Much of the day was taken up by presentations including:

Swaffham Prior District Heat Network: A Village Heat Network, an amazing story about how one determined lady managed to bring about installation of a centralised heat pump system which pipes heat to homes in a village that depended  on oil and solid fuel for heating.

Claverdon: A village near Stratford upon Avon is aiming to install a 10MW solar farm with the aim of providing substantial savings on electricity bills to all local residents.”

Heart of England Community Energy’s Shareholder and Bondholder Register is managed by Ethex Registry. For queries about certificates, payments, holdings or withdrawals, please contact Ethex:

registry@ethex.org.uk | 01865 403304 | www.ethex.org.uk

You can also log into the Ethex Registry Portal to view your HECE investment details, access tax and interest statements and update personal information.

For general enquiries, please get in touch with Communities for Renewables, who manage HECE:

info@hecommunityenergy.co.uk | www.cfrcic.co.uk

Thank you to all our bondholders for your continued support.