The Scottish Government’s Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES) supports communities to engage with, participate in and benefit from the energy transition to net zero emissions. CARES is managed by Local Energy Scotland and offers a range of financial support to community energy projects.

What can CARES support?

CARES can support a wide range of projects including community ownership of renewable technologies, installing renewable technologies in community buildings, community benefits and shared ownership.

CARES provides a package of support, and we make it as easy as possible for you to deliver your project. Our current support and funds are:

  • Community Energy Launchpad – if you are new to community energy and not sure where to start, what to do or are struggling to work out if you are eligible this is where to start.
  • Community Buildings Fund – grants for communities that want to install renewable systems in community buildings such as faith buildings, village halls and community centres.
  • Community Energy Generation Growth Fund – grants and loans for communities that want to own and operate renewable energy technologies.

Advice and support remains available for Community Shared Ownership to help communities assess offers of shared ownership.

The guidance below relates to all support through CARES and is in addition to:

If you are new to community energy and not sure where to start, you can get help from the Community Energy Launchpad. If you already have a clear idea of the support you are looking for, please read our guidance on eligibility and the guidance for the fund you would like to apply for. Check that both your organisation and your project are eligible. If you have questions about your eligibility, you can contact the Community Energy Launchpad for support.

How to apply for funding

You will need to follow these steps:

Step 1: Read the fund guidance. If you think our support might be right for you, review the organisation fund eligibility check guidance and contact your Local Development Officer. If you are not sure where to start, speak to the CARES Community Energy Launchpad team.

Step 2: Submit expression of interest with your organisations governance documents via the CARES project portal.

Step 3: Following approval of your expression of interest you will be able to start your full application. This is where you focus on the project specific elements and upload supporting documents.

Step 4: Submit their application. This is then assessed in line with the guidance. If approved, you will be issued with a grant offer letter.

Please note that whilst you can apply for funding now, we will be unable to confirm funding until after the Scottish Government elections in May. We recommend starting now as we can support you to develop and review your application.

CARES funds – general guidance

Subsidy control

The funds come from public funds and an assessment needs to be made by Local Energy Scotland as to whether it’s a subsidy. Find out more about subsidy control and how this applies to CARES funding.

Match funding

You cannot use grants provided from other Scottish Government funds or in-kind contributions as match funding. Common sources of match funding include:

  • Community reserves or fundraising.
  • Community benefit funds – for example, from local wind farms or power utilities (search our map of community benefits for potential funding sources).
  • Grants – for example, from trusts, lottery, local authorities, or enterprise agencies. Funding Scotland can be a useful resource.
  • The Scottish Government’s SME Loan Scheme available from Business Energy Scotland for an interest-free loan, provided you do not claim the cashback on this loan. Please note that although you can apply for this interest free loan, you cannot receive a grant (the cashback element) if you are already receiving a grant from CARES.
  • Bank loans.

Claiming the grant

CARES grants are claimed in stages as the project progresses, and claims must be submitted as contractor invoice(s) are received. Each claim should be submitted at the CARES funding percentage stated in your grant offer letter, so you must have match funding in place before contracting and drawing down the funding.

VAT

When working out your project costs and funding request, you must not use costs inclusive of VAT if you are able to reclaim VAT from HMRC, or if VAT is not chargeable. Generally, if you are VAT registered you will be able to reclaim the VAT and should therefore use costs exclusive of VAT when working out project costs and your funding request.

Most installations of energy saving materials and heating equipment in buildings used solely for charitable purposes are zero-rated for VAT purposes. Further information is available here: Energy-saving materials and heating equipment (VAT Notice 708/6) – GOV.UK. If in doubt you should speak to your installer, accountant or financial adviser.

Acknowledging CARES support and promoting your project

Successful CARES applicants must acknowledge the support that their project has received from CARES, both in promotional activity and in on-site signage.

We’ve put together a useful guide to help you do this. The guide also has hints and tips on how to promote your project.

Other help and support available from CARES

As well as funding, CARES provides free and impartial advice and support in other ways too. For example:

  • We can help you progress your enquiry from expression of interest stage through to funding application submission, helping you to plan your project in the process.
  • For complex projects, or where a more technical assessment is required, we can fund one of our technical consultants to support you.
  • Our website is packed with resources including reports and downloadable guides, and case studies.

Need help?

If you need help, this is available from your local development officer.

If you need help with an application for a shared ownership project, please contact Mark Brennan, for projects north of the central belt and Christina Hinds, for projects in the central belt and south.

We usually recommend that you discuss your project first with your local development officer – this is particularly important with shared ownership projects for example. For other projects such as installing renewables in community buildings, we’d encourage you to follow the provided guidance and use our example application form to complete your application.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact your local development officer who will be happy to help.