Category: Decarbonisation

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Helping Pen Llŷn’s residents with fuel poverty and retrofit (blog by Jon Bethell)

Jon Bethell moved to Anelog, near Aberdaron six years ago having lived in Coventry for many years working in the aerospace and automotive industries. Prior to going to University in Coventry, he lived in Rhydycroesau, near Oswestry. He is a committed Welsh learner and now regrets not paying more attention to Welsh classes at his primary school in Llansilin! He is currently on the board of directors at Ynni Llŷn and is also standing-in as office manager at the company.

Here, he writes a blog about how attending GwyrddNi’s Community Assemblies on the Climate led to him being a director at Ynni Llŷn, and tells us about the programmes they’ve been working on this year.

Energy groups at the Climate Assemblies

About three years ago I received a letter asking if I would like to join a movement called GwyrddNi. The letter asked if I was interested in the environment and if I would be willing to attend assemblies to with other members of the community. It sounded interesting so I signed up.

A number of us formed an energy and transport sub-group. This sub-group met on a few separate occasions and we generated ideas to go into the GwyrddNi action plan.

During the final assembly we were encouraged take positive action so our sub-group met again and we decided to use Ynni Llŷn as vehicle to deliver our best ideas.

Joining the board of Ynni Llŷn

At that time Ynni Llŷn was listed with Companies House and it had a bank account but it was relatively dormant. Prior to the pandemic, Ynni Llŷn had significant successes, installing the first community solar array in Wales at Sarn Meyllteyrn and commissioning several reports into energy generation and transmission on the Llŷn. Like many companies, the pandemic had a negative impact on Ynni Llŷn and so it was ripe for a fresh injection of ideas and enthusiasm.

An AGM was held on 24th June 2023 in which the board of directors were nominated and agreed. Funding was already being sought via the ARFOR2 programme administered by Gwynedd Council and other funding options were also discussed. In effect, this was the start of our Retrofit for All and Well & Warm projects.

6 out of 7 of the board members were now people who had met through the GwyrddNi Community Assemblies on the Climate and had chosen Energy as their main focus. We also created a WhatsApp group to keep “members” up to date – this was anyone who had been part of the assemblies who wanted to learn what we were up to.

Jon at Pen Llŷn’s Community Assemblies on the Climate

Retrofit for All and other projects

It was important for us that we created good jobs for local, Welsh-speaking people, which is exactly what the ARFOR2 grant is for. As well as that, we took out a loan from the Robert Owen Community Bank so that we could get started with recruiting people right away.

As directors, none of us draw any salary; we decided together that any profit we make will go to employing local people or towards projects that benefit the community.

Retrofit for All aims to generate local skilled jobs to insulate homes, improve heating systems, generate on-site electricity and deliver a net-zero and carbon free future for Pen Llŷn. Retrofit means upgrading existing buildings to be more energy-efficient.

We have been able to fund training for our staff members, who all hail from around Mynytho and Botwnnog, to become qualified Energy Advisors and, for one of them, a Retrofit Assessor.

This is important because often the people with these qualifications drive all the way from Cardiff or London in order to do an assessment on a house. We thought – why shouldn’t local people be given the opportunity to learn skills that will become even more important in the future? We also use local trade people to install the energy saving measures whenever possible.

We have since become partners on other projects: Prosiect Sero Net Gwynedd, Well & Warm, Cartrefi Clyd and Cyd Ynni (see more information here). These projects complement each other and are primarily focused on helping the local community with cost-of-living pressures, fuel poverty and improving the energy efficiency of their homes.

Well & Warm and Prosiect Sero Net Gwynedd offer free energy advice and home visits to help people with aspects such as payment of energy bills, claiming benefits and making improvements to their homes. Retrofit for All is a service whereby Ynni Llŷn can provide home energy assessments, retrofit advice and contractor project management.

Being a not-for-profit company we are able to offer a high-quality service with strong links to the community. We believe that we are one of the only not-for-profit retrofit companies operating in Wales, possibly in the UK.

The Ynni Llŷn team at Sioe Nefyn this year

What we’ve learnt… and what’s next!

Starting (or re-staring) a company isn’t easy! As a board, we have had to contend all kinds of challenges. It requires a great deal of drive and dedication, especially when people are working on a voluntary basis. Obtaining funding isn’t easy but it’s just the first step, there are many hurdles to navigate after receiving the funds. We are very fortunate to have a brilliant team of directors that have helped steer the company to this point. It has also been extremely encouraging to see our staff develop in their roles and we have a full programme of training/personal development for all our employees.

Now that we have recruited a full team and the first wave of training has been delivered, we are in a position to start work installing energy saving measures to homes on the Llŷn. We have been providing energy advice for some time now but we aim to strengthen our networks in order to help many more residents. That is why we are here, it’s our reason for being, we want to help as many people in our community as possible.

Ynni Llŷn is also the delivery partner for GwyrddNi in Pen Llŷn, so we are also working alongside Dafydd to support his work in bringing the ideas in the Action Plans to life. We’re lucky to have recruited people who are passionate about engaging local schools and delivering education about energy, so we’re hoping that our team will be able to support GwyrddNi’s work more going forward.

See more at https://www.ynnillyn.cymru/ or follow Ynni Llŷn on Facebook or Instagram!

GwyrddNi is a community-based, community-led climate action movement that brings people together in five areas of Gwynedd to discuss, share and act locally to tackle climate change. 

If you want to be part of co-creating greener, more sustainable and resilient communities – get in touch – or click the button below to let us know how you’d like to be involved. We will get back to you and connect to you to most appropriate person/people!

Get involved!
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What’s it like to cycle to work in Pen Llŷn? – Elin’s story

Hwb Beics Pen Llŷn is a new offering based in Congl Meinciau, Botwnnog. It arose out of collaboration between GwyrddNi’s Green Transport group, O Ddrws i Ddrws and Ynni Llŷn, with a huge thanks to Sustrans for donating and lending some of the bicycles. For a membership of £20 a month, you can borrow a bike (even an electric one) to get a taste of cycling before committing to buying one!

This blog was written by Elin Jones, who was one of the first people to join and borrow a bike!

Blog by Elin Jones

Over the last month by joining Hwb Beics Pen Lŷn I have been very fortunate to have the opportunity to hire one of their electric bikes. I would like to thank GwyrddNi for the great opportunity. Here are a few words about my experience.

Back in May I had to scrap my trusty little car and at that time with little money I started to think how in the world could I live here – in the middle of nowhere – without a car. I thought about buses, walking, riding a bike and an electric bike but the truth about it is that I failed… this time.

After two weeks of relying on mum for lifts to work (thanks Mum) being stuck and catching the rare Rhydyclafdy bus I gave up and realised I had to buy a car. I got news of a cheap second-hand car so that was it. I have to admit it has been very handy over the summer *cough* winter and I would have struggled being without it.

However, in the period when I didn’t have a car I had decided that I wanted to rely less on it. I had been looking at an electric bike but couldn’t afford one. In my thought-shower and by asking around I heard about the Hwb Beics – a joint project between GwyrddNi and other community initiatives such as Ynni Llŷn and O Ddrws i Ddrws. There were electric bikes available for the community to use and I was keen to test drive one and use one as often as I could over the summer! I wondered how possible it was for me to live here without a car, really?

After meeting Dafydd at Congl Meinciau and seeing the bikes that were available, I had the opportunity to go for a spin around the car park and get to know the bike. There are 4 settings that go from a little help from the bike to a bit more help from the bike – ‘eco’ ‘tour’ ‘sport’ and ‘turbo’ – and 10 gears. The bike won’t go anywhere without me pedalling. And that’s it! Simple. The only thing to do now was to get used to riding the bike on the main road. The bike I have folds, the handlebars come down making it possible to fit it in my car. Great!

The following day with a helmet on my head and a hi-vis vest I started my journey to work. Llanbedrog would be my first destination – about 5 miles cross country from Madryn towards the coast. Beautiful. For the first time that I can remember I was able to go all the way there and back without having to get off the bike and push it up a hill. Wow! It’s a relaxing experience riding a bike like this and it feels great – I’ll keep at it.

I will be working on the National Trust car parks this summer in some of the most special and now busiest areas of Llŷn – Llanbedrog, Porthdinllaen, Porthor and the prettiest village at the edge of the world – Aberdaron. It’s nice to be able to use the electric bike to go there.

I use the bike regularly – to go to work and outside of work as well. I have a small bag attached to the side where I’m able to carry what I need. I sometimes take the charger if I think of going further. Although – the battery lasts well and will go to Aberdaron and back (which is 13 miles each way) – with no problem! Cars are pretty good at leaving enough space most of the time and I’m happy going on all the roads.

I love the bike. It’s a great opportunity to have everyday use of an electric bike at an extremely reasonable price that I can afford. This opportunity has also played a big part in me becoming more familiar with GwyrddNi’s work as a community organisation that acts on climate change.

As I flow down the back lanes with the wind in my face I have time to think and appreciate everything. The sky is a happy blue. The pink of the red campion and the purple of the foxgloves leap out from the green hedges . There is a smell of grass is the air. That outside smell. It smells of life. I see birds – loads of birds!  Lots of large birds of prey, low, hovering, one on an electric pole – red kite, buzzard and small morning birds – one bright yellow! I see the world from a different perspective for a bit.

It’s a positive change, bright and fresh. The exercise and the fresh air is good for me. The endless lanes are like rivers through the land while I peddle my way forward, considering my own role in the community and what small changes I can make to tread this earth a little lighter.

–

If you’re interested in joining Hwb Beics Pen Llŷn, contact Dafydd at dafydd.rhys@ynnillyn.cymru

GwyrddNi is a community-based, community-led climate action movement that brings people together in five areas of Gwynedd to discuss, share and act locally to tackle climate change. 

If you want to be part of co-creating greener, more sustainable and resilient communities – get in touch – or click the button below to let us know how you’d like to be involved. We will get back to you and connect to you to most appropriate person/people!

Get involved!
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Decarbonising buildings: a visit to Llanfairpwll Memorial Hall

The members of GwyrddNi’s five areas have expressed a great interest in decarbonising buildings, with several projects started or in the process of being developed. After a workshop in Penygroes earlier this year, the network members requested visits to see renovation work that had taken place in various locations locally.

Several locations were suggested, and some of the crew went to Llanfairpwll Memorial Hall first. The feedback received was very useful and shows us how meeting in person, discussing and learning from each other’s experiences and lessons can be valuable, even if we are not on the same type of active track.

Here’s what some had to say:

“It was very interesting to meet people from other halls and organisations and some of them had the same problems as us. I also enjoyed meeting experts in Passivhaus technology and I would have liked to spend much more time discussing and learning from these people.

The presentation by Gareth Cemlyn was very interesting, and the visit was a successful one. I’ve had a lot of new ideas on how to develop into our hall.”

“The situation of the Hall in Llanfairpwll is not very similar to ours – they had specific problems due to the deterioration of their hall over time – while our hall has been upgraded fairly recently and their solutions to their problems were different from what we intend to do.

Nevertheless, the visit was very useful because we were able to hear the story from where they started and their journey to the present very clearly.

I learned a lot by listening to the process they had followed and by hearing Gareth Cemlyn speak very openly about the problems he had faced and what he would have done differently if he had the opportunity again.

It was also an opportunity to discuss more general points about running a village centre and hear about different ways organisations deal with problems and the challenges of doing this.”

There will be another visit to Canolfan Cymru Fydd, Yr Orsaf, Penygroes, which has recently been renovated to Passivhaus standards. Join us on Monday evening, June 10th at 18:30. All are welcome. For more information and booking, contact lowri@deg.cymru 

By Lowri Hedd Vaughan

GwyrddNi is a community-based, community-led climate action movement that brings people together in five areas of Gwynedd to discuss, share and act locally to tackle climate change. 

If you want to be part of co-creating greener, more sustainable and resilient communities – get in touch – or click the button below to let us know how you’d like to be involved. We will get back to you and connect to you to most appropriate person/people!

Get involved!