Local Net Zero Hubs – Making Net Zero Projects Happen 

Created by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero in 2018, the five Local Net Zero Hubs provide free strategic and technical support to local authorities, public sector organisations, and community groups in England to develop net zero projects. The Hubs take net zero projects from the earliest stages of feasibility to investment and delivery. 

The Hubs’ objectives in providing this support are to:  

• Increase the number, quality, and scale of local net zero projects.  

• Enable local areas to attract private or public finance for decarbonisation projects.  

• Raise awareness of the opportunity for, and benefits of, local investment.  

• Support regional co-ordination and collaboration between local partners and share local learning. 

The Hubs also work to deliver national projects locally, through programmes developed and funded by the Department including:  

• Supporting community-led renewable energy, energy demand reduction, and energy supply projects through the Community Energy Fund.  

• Domestic retrofit programmes such as the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, the Home Upgrade Grant, and the Local Authority Delivery scheme. These schemes fund energy efficiency improvements including insulation, draught proofing, upgraded heating systems, solar panels, and heat pumps in low income and social homes.  

• The Public Sector Decarbonisation Fund, helping local authorities to make their own buildings easier, greener, and cheaper to heat and power.  

• The Local Energy Advice Demonstrator programme, piloting innovative ways of providing energy advice to hard-to-reach communities and for local people who live in hard-to-treat homes. 

Our work

• To scale up investment in local energy schemes
• To refine the business case for investment
• To provide impartial technical advice
• To raise awareness and encourage collaborations
• To encourage innovation and new funding models
• To promote action on the climate emergency