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OverviewPresentation of our feasibility study findings - join a community conversation on energy, democracy and lasting local benefit.
Local Energy. Lasting Benefit.
What did our feasibility study find – and what happens next?
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The evidence is in. Now we bring it back to our community.
In August, we invited our community to join a conversation about a different approach to renewable energy.
We asked whether renewable energy could be developed in a way that gives communities a meaningful voice from the beginning – supporting farming and nature, strengthening local energy resilience and keeping more of the benefits within the communities that host it.
We also asked an important question:
Could a community-owned renewable energy project actually work here?
Since then, independent specialists have been investigating exactly that.
Now we're inviting you back to hear what they found.
Our feasibility study
Growing Community Energy is a government-funded feasibility study exploring whether a community-owned renewable energy project could be developed on land between Garboldisham and South Lopham.
The study has examined the potential for a small-scale combination of agrivoltaic solar and community-owned onshore wind generation, alongside productive farming, nature recovery and local community benefit.
Independent contractors have been carrying out detailed work to test the idea from different perspectives.
At this event, we'll present their findings – including the opportunities they have identified, the challenges and constraints, and what the evidence tells us about whether the idea is feasible.
We want to share the findings openly – not just the good bits.
This is an opportunity to see the evidence, understand what has been learned and ask questions directly about the findings.
What have we learned?
We'll share the findings from the feasibility study, including what we've learned about:
The suitability of the site being assessed.
The potential for solar and wind generation.
How energy generation could work alongside productive farming.
Environmental and biodiversity considerations.
How locally generated electricity could potentially benefit local households, businesses and community organisations.
The practical and financial viability of community ownership.
What we heard from the community – including concerns and objections raised during the first stage of engagement.
What those findings mean for the future of the project.
At our first community event, we deliberately didn't present a finished proposal and ask people whether they supported it.
Instead, we asked people to question it.
What concerns you? What would you need to know? What could make this approach worthwhile? What would make it unacceptable? And how should local people be involved in decisions about energy infrastructure that affects them?
Those questions have helped inform the feasibility process.
This event brings that process full circle: sharing the evidence back with the community before any decisions are made or steps taken.
So, who decides what happens next?
Growing Community Energy is built around the principles of deliberative democracy: our communities should have access to good information, be able to hear different perspectives, question the evidence and have a meaningful voice in decisions that affect our community.
That means the feasibility study isn't simply a technical exercise.
The independent reports provide evidence about what could be done.
The next question is what should be done.
There is still no commitment to proceed with a development simply because the feasibility work has been completed.
The findings – together with community views – will help determine whether there is a viable and locally supported way forward.
What to expect on the evening:
This will be a presentation-style event, followed by time for questions and answers.
During the evening you'll be able to:
Hear the headline findings from the independent feasibility work.
See how the original concept has stood up to detailed investigation.
Understand the opportunities, constraints and trade-offs identified.
Hear what we've learned from community feedback so far.
Ask questions of the project lead, raise any concerns & discuss what the evidence means for the community.
Help inform what happens next (further feedback forms can be completed on the day).
This is your invitation – whatever your view.
You don't need to have attended our previous event and you don't need to know anything about renewable energy to take part.
Whether you came to the first event or are joining the conversation for the first time; whether you're enthusiastic, uncertain or sceptical – we'd like you to be there.
This is not about presenting a decision that's already been made.
It's about putting the evidence on the table, talking openly about what it tells us, and involving our community in the conversation about what should happen next.
📍 Blo Norton Village Hall
📅 Monday 28 September
🕢 7:00pm – 8:30pm
Free entry.
Local Energy. Lasting Benefit.
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Event venue
Blo Norton Village Hall, Middle Rd, Blo' Norton, Diss IP22 2GA, Blo Norton Village Hall, Middle Road, Diss, IP22 2GA, United Kingdom, Banham
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