There is a bright spot in the future for Croydon, and KEN TOWL went along at the weekend to discover more about it
And there was cake: Croydon Community Energy’s launch offered a slice of sunshine
When a breathless press release from Croydon Community Energy informs you of a scheme that will not only pay you a 5% return on your investment but also contribute to saving the planet, it sounds too good to be true.
On closer inspection, that 5% is in fact “up to 5%”, leaving any surplus profits to provide community gardens (a rather specific aim) and also to alleviate fuel poverty (a rather general aspiration).
Well, everyone likes gardens and no one likes poverty, so if there was something in this, I thought, I had better find out.
Now, Croydon Community Energy (or CCE as they will hereafter be referred to) have a website where you can learn about and purchase their shares, and where you can also access a business plan that is a daunting read but might make sense to a qualified accountant.
I am not a qualified accountant, but the breathless press release breathlessly informed me that CCE were hosting “a vibrant launch party” where marketing director Risham Waseem wanted to “share love for community energy” and CCE founder Connie Duxbury was “excited to contribute to meaningful climate action, after being empowered to make a difference following eight years in the energy sector”.
Interested audience: around 50 potential investors attended Saturday’s launch
I only hoped that she had been empowered without the exploitation of too many fossil fuels.
When I arrived at The Venue on Middle Street on Saturday afternoon, I was given a blue token which I exchanged for a can of Doom Bar, and I made my way into the throng of around 50 potential investors, all, presumably, equally moderately lubricated.
And then I saw the cake. Decorated with a great blazing sun, it took pride of place among the sandwiches (some of which were labelled “vegan”, others were said to be “gluten free”). It looked like just the right level of hospitality: tasteful rather than wasteful.
Then we were hushed as Duxbury began her presentation with a short animated film that explained the premise. This is: CCE raises money to finance the installation of solar panels on community buildings in the Croydon area, they install them and sell the resultant energy cheaply to the occupier. The resultant income will pay a 5% profit for shareholders and any surplus can go to other green projects.
At the end of the animation, the video flashed up lots of images of smiling people, mostly the board and volunteers, but there also appeared, for about half a second, a grinning image of Croydon Mayor Jason “Fix the Finances” Perry. Oh well…
Duxbury spoke briefly and convincingly after the video, and invited people to hang around, chat and think about investing and, in the meantime, enter a quiz.
Two things occurred to me. First, there was no hard sell here; they wanted people to think before they bought. Second, Connie Duxbury looked vaguely familiar.
Meet the board: CCE’s movers and shakers at Saturday’s launch (from left) Murray Mitchell, Gareth Simkins, Connie Duxbury the CEO, Risham Waseem, Lee Barker and Chris Galpin
To conclude she asked if there was anyone from “one of the sites” in the audience. There are three initial projects planned for Croydon: at Archbishop Tenison’s School, Holy Innocents Church and the Shree Swarminarayan Temple.
A man in the audience put his hand up; he was from Holy Innocents. Would he give the CCE an endorsement? Yes! He explained that, while the installation of solar panels would save money, it would also save God’s creation. A win-win if ever there was one.
I had a chat with Duxbury while potential investors grazed on cake and sandwiches. Was the stated intention of raising of between £120,000 to £340,000 do-able? She was confident that it was, that other community groups (and there are hundreds of them around the country) had raised greater amounts and that today was the culmination of several years of talking to larger-scale potential investors.
They had had “expressions of interest” from larger investors.
“What sort of percentage of expressions of interest convert into actual investment?” I asked.
Duxbury said that these were investors driven not just by the return but also by the sustainability element. Experience suggested 75%. She spoke with a confidence that suggested she knew what she was talking about. Where had she been empowered? “Octopus Energy”, working on their community projects, she said. Turns out the CCE board is packed with experts who know what they are doing, which no doubt has helped them garner so many expressions of interest.
Duxbury explained that the 5% return was a relatively safe assumption, that we can assume that schools, churches and other buildings will continue to need to be heated. The unit at Archbishop Tenison’s, for example, is set to provide 85% of their total electricity use, making estimated savings in a year of more £110,000.
I work in a school and I know just how much schools spend on power. That’s a lot of money that could otherwise be spent on more staff or resources. It sounded like a win-win-win.
“And the surplus?” I asked, “how do you plan to alleviate poverty?” This was by giving advice to users, educating people in ways to save energy.
And Mayor Perry, I asked… did his appearance in the video suggest that he was supportive? Apparently, he has offered warm words. Perhaps what he should be doing is saving Council Tax-payers’ money by buying cheap solar power from CCE.
It has been a long time since Croydon Council declared a climate emergency, and then promptly did nothing. It will be interesting to see what other parties’ mayoral candidates have to say about their plans for working with CCE. There are, after all, other ways to “fix the finances” than just putting up Council Tax.
“I don’t know if you remember,” said Duxbury, “but you used to teach me at Coloma when I was in year 9.”
Ahhh, now I remembered. “Citizenship, yes.” It was a long time ago and she had changed a bit. Given what Citizenship was supposed to achieve, turning young people into citizens that engaged with their communities, this felt like an endorsement of the subject itself.
Duxbury and her team have much of which to be proud and I wish them the best. Especially now that, convinced by the arguments and the cake and the Doom Bar, I have gone and bought myself a £50 share in CCE.
If you want to invest in Croydon or, indeed, the planet, you can get your shares here and you can also see the detailed business plan and the share offer brochure.
You can buy a slice of the CCE cake: Ken Towl has invested in the solar energy scheme
I think this is a good news story.
I came away full of admiration for good competent people doing good things competently. And I have come across a lot of good competent people doing good things competently in Croydon, such as NightWatch, who provide food for those who need it, market trader Jose Joseph who, in liaison with Cockney’s pie and mash shop, cooks for them, or the South West London Law Centre who provide free legal help, or the South Norwood Community Kitchen that provide a warm safe space and pay-what-you-can meals.
Sometimes, I feel proud to live in Croydon. This was one of those times.
Read more: Time for London’s politicians to redesign streets for people
Read more: ‘It’s now or never’ for Croydon to start its Green New Deal
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Is the money invested in the CCE scheme ring-fenced, so that Jason Perry or any of the other self-serving Croydon Council crooks can’t get their grubby hands on it?
Yes it’s nothing to do with the Council at all!
Don’t worry Jim, the money will go nowhere near the council. It will be invested by the board of CCE who, by contrast, are experts who know what they are doing.
I see a trend here, the few things doing well in Croydon never seem to have anything to do with the Council! All we need is a well run Council too and Croydon could be thriving!!
Thanks Ken! This interesting and feels good. But, as it’s Croydon – WHAT’S THE CATCH???