18% of carbon emissions come from domestic heating. To meet our legally binding commitment to reach net zero by 2050, we have to change the way we heat our homes over the next 10 years.
CommuniHeat was a partnership between the people of Barcombe, local community energy group Ovesco, engineering practice Buro Happold, electricity distributor UK Power Networks and Community Energy South to develop a model for rural decarbonisation.
Through the project, we explored how rural communities can switch to low-carbon heating in a planned way that ensures comfort, affordability and a smooth transition.
Residents in Barcombe were offered energy use surveys and monitoring for their own homes. These tools helped them to make informed decisions about installing retrofit measures.
Together we captured the energy use data and created a model to show what Barcombe would look like as a net zero village. We also documented how to achieve it. CommuniHeat demonstrates how other similar communities can achieve the same goal.
