About
Focus areas
Generation
Solar PV systems have already been installed at Stockwell. We’re working on a new hydropower installation for the River Nidd.
Storage
Battery units are in place to support energy balancing. These allow us to store power when it’s generated and release it when it’s needed.
Distribution
EV chargers are being installed. In time, we aim to create more links between generation sites, storage, and public use.
Control
We’re part of CONDOR, a national project testing how communities can manage their own energy flows. We’re also exploring visual tools to help people see where their energy comes from and how it moves.
A town-scale energy system
Knaresborough Community Energy Limited is a Community Benefit Society registered with the Financial Conduct Authority Mutuals Public Register. It was founded in early 2023 by four directors.
We are a not-for-profit company setup in 2023 that exists to tackle climate change by developing community scale renewable energy projects in Knaresborough. We will be highly engaged with the local community through educational engagement and by offering the community opportunities to take a financial stake in renewable energy projects so that they are truly community owned.
We build practical projects - solar arrays, battery systems, EV chargers, and hydropower - and look for ways to connect them into a working whole.
Over time, this becomes something more than a collection of parts. It becomes a local energy system. A microgrid. Designed and delivered at the scale of a town. Managed by people who live there.
Why community energy?
The national grid was not built for the future we now face. It is centralised, complex, and owned far from the places it supplies.
As the climate and energy landscape shifts, communities need more say in how energy is generated, stored and shared. They also need infrastructure that reflects their own scale and needs.
That’s where community energy comes in. It allows towns and cities to develop their own supply, to keep more value locally, and to shape solutions that are visible and accountable.
Across the UK, hundreds of groups like ours are building parts of this transition. Some are driven by resilience. Others by cost. Others by a need to act where governments and markets are slow.
What links them is a shared belief: that the future of energy should be built from the ground up.
Team
Meet the passionate individuals behind Knaresborough Community Energy. Their expertise and commitment drive our mission forward.
Director
Gilly Lacey
Gilly is a qualified electrical engineer. She has worked for Water Power Enterprises a specialist Hydro Power Consultancy and holds an MSc in Renewable Energy. Gilly is a Lecturer in Electric Engineering at Teesside University and an expert in battery storage technologies. Gilly has technical expertise in EV charger technology.
Director
Patrick Organ
Patrick is a physicist and lives in Knaresborough. He worked as both a physics and special needs teacher in his career. He is currently chief examiner for Physics A Level. He is a keen environmentalist and joined Knaresborough Community Energy to support us in developing our renewable projects.
Position / Role
William Taylor
Describe the team member here. Write a brief description of their role and responsibilities, or a short bio with a background summary.
Partners
We actively work with local organisations and residents to create impactful renewable energy solutions that benefit everyone.
For example here is the Solar Panel Project at COGS supply energy for the Church and surrounding area.
