Village's chance to join pioneering energy trial

A NORTHUMBERLAND village has been invited to take part in a "pioneering" rural energy trial which could set a template for other villages in the North East.

- DANIEL HALL

Humshaugh is one of only four communities in the North chosen for the trial, as it was considered the "ideal UK rural archetypal village in which to demonstrate a new, smarter energy community approach".

Organisers of the Humshaugh Energy Local Management (HELM) initiative hope to get at least 100 of the village's 350 homes signed up to the scheme.

If the trial proves successful, it could become a template for dozens of villages in the North East to follow, with the intention of helping them achieve greater energy independence and community governance.

The trial gives residents a say in how they manage and consume energy for the benefit of everyone living in the community.

David Still is the director of Humshaugh Net Zero, a community group aiming to make the village the first carbon-neutral community in Northumberland.