November 2019

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Welcome subscribers, volunteers and community energy champions, old and new! This month we're here to brighten your Monday with three mysterious b's: bingo, beehives and boosting our offering... CREW Energy will have an afternoon of fun with younger children at Devas Club playing a range of sustainability-themed games. On Wednesday 6th November CREW Energy volunteers and Devas Club staff will engage the youth club’s younger members (8-12 years old) through a range of EcoAction Games on themes of sustainability and energy saving. CREW Energy are trialling the use of the games as an effective means of educating young people around key environmental themes and energy-saving projects. This trial is funded by the London Community Energy Fund awarded to CREW Energy and Devas in late 2018 by the Greater London Authority. The EcoAction Games contain a fantastic range of different games including… giant (indoor) eco action snakes + ladders; eco action twister; giant eco action toppers (top trumps); giant eco play your cards right; eco action bingo; and a collection of smaller versions of the same games to be played in pairs/small groups … and are themed around a range of different topics relevant to both younger and older audiences.   CREW Energy will be asking for feedback from both young people and Devas staff to find out what games are more popular and most effective to help plan how we can use these games in further community engagement work throughout London. Our games afternoon is part of the wider partnership project between Devas Club and CREW Energy. Thanks to both GLA and UKPN Power Partners Funding, Devas and CREW have worked together to install a Building Management System and replace lights with LEDs, a Community Energy London first. Before the end of the year, CREW will also be developing education engagement sessions targeted at older young people who attend Devas.   This year CREW was nominated for the ‘Community Energy & Carbon Saving Award’ at the Community Energy Awards 2019 – our first nomination! The event, held at London's City Hall was green, both inside and out, and led by Chair of the London Environment Committee and proud CREW member, Leonie Cooper. Sadly we were pipped to the post by Brighton and Hove Energy Services Co-operative (BHESCo), but it's hard to be anything but impressed – they have helped an outstanding 1500 customers with phenomenal annual savings of 441 tonnes of carbon! Plus, we got to hear all about the remaining nominees’ and the 10 winners’ inspiring community projects, from social impact to thermosolar beehives, which certainly made for a buzzing atmosphere. We left City Hall feeling inspired to work even harder on even bigger projects in the run up to next year's nominations.   Check out the hive of activity This year’s Fuel Poverty Awareness Day has been moved to the beginning of winter (29th November) to give co-ops like us a greater chance of reaching those at risk of fuel poverty and helping them keep warm and well all winter long. So, to honour the occasion we have a few updates hot off the press. Caffeine boost for energy cafés   The CREW energy café programme has been a hot topic in each of our newsletters, but temperatures are soaring this month; we are very excited to announce that we have just won funding from the UKPN Power Partners fund! This funding will go towards training our 15 new energy advisors to help run 22 energy cafés across Lambeth, Merton and Wandsworth throughout winter 2019/2020. Keeping London Warm and Well We're also proud to announce CREW is the latest member of the joint, multi-service Warm and Well campaign, powered by Wimbledon Guild with Merton Council funding and support. Our first event will take place at Commonside Community Development Trust on 28th November alongside GP practices from across Mitcham. That's all for this month! But if you're interested in more CREW news, follow us via the social media icons below or...   Sign up to the mailing list