Net Zero Villages Grant Fund

Important update: September 2025

Successful energy saving projects are now being installed, saving thousands of pounds of running costs for 10 community buildings in East Cambridgeshire

Thank you to all organisations that showed an interest in the grant fund, which was heavily over-subscribed. Commiserations to those applicants that were unsuccessful, but hopefully we can work with you and other new applicants in the coming years.

Successful projects

The following ten projects were successful at being awarded a grant (sums rounded to nearest £1,000):

  • Queen Adelaide Village Hall - £10,000 for PV solar panels, battery storage and loft insulation - Project almost completed
  • Little Downham Pavillion - £14,000 for PV solar panels and battery storage - Project completed
  • Burwell Mandeville Hall - £25,000 for PV solar panels, battery storage and other incidentals - Adjustments to the project currently being made
  • Lode Fassage Hall - £23,000 for PV solar panels and battery storage - Project completed.
  • Haddenham Arkenstall - £17,000 for PV solar panels and battery storage - Final details for the project being arranged
  • Kentford and Kennett Village Hall - £15,000 for PV solar panels and battery storage - Project completed
  • Kentford and Kennett Pavillion - £9,000 for PV solar panels and battery storage - Project completed
  • Burwell Museum - £15,000 for PV solar panels, battery storage, education hub and demonstration wind turbine - Project completed
  • Kirtling and Upend Village Hall - £12,000 for PV solar panels and battery storage - Project completed
  • Little Thetford Village Hall - £5,000 for various insulation measures - Project almost completed

For further details on some of the completed projects, please see our July 2025 press release . We will update this webpage with more details of successful projects, as they proceed with installing the works over 2025.

Background to the grant funding scheme 

In autumn 2024 we invited local community groups and parish councils to apply for grant funding to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions from their operations or in their local community.

This is a 100% grant fund (no match funding required) for measures such as insulation and solar panels, low carbon transport or perhaps even installing a 'green roof'.

Only local community groups could apply, and funding must be used on buildings or land open to the public. We anticipated most of the funding will be used to improve the energy efficiency of a local village hall or other buildings that local community groups use.

Full details, terms and conditions and key dates are set out on this page.

Potential applicants

Applicants had to be one of the following:

  • a parish or town council in East Cambridgeshire
  • a voluntary, community or social enterprise sector organisation, with the applicable asset to be improved being located in East Cambridgeshire
  • other public sector bodies applying on behalf of an East Cambridgeshire community

Funded projects

The project must deliver at least one of the following:

  • tackle energy use and/or support energy efficiency or energy generation retrofit to a community building; or
  • enabling access to public transport or access to local services through low carbon transport; or
  • nature-based solutions to tackle overheating of community buildings 

Funding available

A total of £150,000 was available for distribution as grants from January 2025. It is capital funding, which means that an asset must be created as a consequence of the project. It cannot be used for general day to day running costs or maintenance. The project to be funded must complete all works by February 2026.

The minimum single grant award is £5,000, and the maximum is £30,000.  

We are grateful for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority providing the base funding to enable us to run this scheme.

Further details

For further details on the grant scheme, including examples of projects that could be funded and what would be excluded, please see the Grant Information Guidance note. 

When to apply 

We assessed expressions of interest on a first come first served basis and then sent a full application form as soon as possible after we approved an expression of interest.

Applicants then had until 31 December 2024 to submit a full application. All applications received by 31 December 2024 were then assessed from January 2025, and funding awarded to successful projects. No funding remained after this process.

More information

Please direct all queries to NetZeroVillages@eastcambs.gov.uk 

Please note: due to the terms and conditions of the fund, funding was not available to improve assets in the urban area of Ely or Soham, because such areas have access to alternative funding. However, villages within the parishes of Ely and Soham did qualify.