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APPENDIX I: SURVEY OF BENEFICIARIES

Introduction

1. A telephone survey of eighty beneficiaries was undertaken as part of the study. The survey sought to examine use and satisfaction regarding the advisory service, and assess levels of additionality and deadweight associated with the SCHRI support. A structured questionnaire was prepared and approved by the client before proceeding. Households were issued with a letter by Halcrow providing background details to the study and informing them that that they may be contacted. The results from the survey were entered into an SPSS database for statistical analysis. This appendix summarises the findings from the survey. It is divided into several main sections. These are:

• sample characteristics
• use of advisory service
• funding and leverage
• additionality and deadweight
• project benefits

Sample characteristics

2. The main objective of the sample selection was to ensure that there was sufficient balance between household and community beneficiaries. This was achieved with a relatively equal split between the two funding streams, with 38 community and 42 household interviews undertaken, which equates to twenty per cent of all completed projects (18% of community and 22% of household). All of the interviews were undertaken with completed projects, rather than those still under development.

3. The sample includes a relatively good spread of projects across all geographic areas, with interviews undertaken in all of the twelve SCHRI areas. The areas with higher numbers in the sample generally reflect the higher number of projects undertaken in these areas. The geographic distribution of projects in the sample is shown in the following table.

Table A1: Geographic Distribution of Sample

4. The distribution of the sample across technologies reflects the trend across the wider population (Table A2). Nearly half of the household projects in the sample were for solar heating, reflecting the dominance of this technology in the household stream, where it accounted for seventy per cent of all completed projects. The number of solar heating projects was restricted in the household sample, in order to ensure a balance of other technologies. The biomass projects also include five grants for connection to the Lerwick district heating system.

5. Eight of the projects covered in the community stream were for feasibility studies, and the remaining thirty for capital grants. The community stream is less dominated by one particular technology, reflecting the greater autonomy of the initiative in funding a range of technologies. This contrasts with the household stream where the initiative purely responds to market demand.

6. The projects categorised as 'other' include a number of multi-technology capital projects, such as hydrogen/wind, and a number of feasibility studies which reviewed a range of potential renewable technologies. The 'other' projects in the household stream covered two combined solar and wind projects.

Table A2: Technology Distribution of Projects

Use of advisory service

7. The way in which respondents first heard of the scheme differed markedly between the household and community streams. In the household stream, the installer was the more important source (31%), followed by word of mouth (24%) and advertisements (19%) (Figure A1).

8. For community organisations, the main sources were HIE/Local Enterprise Company (26%), the local energy centre (24%) and other organisations (21%). Generally, 'other organisations' included sources internal within the same organisation such as within other departments, within local authorities and housing associations and from locally based development trusts.

9. These sources for the community stream emphasise the intra and inter organisational networks which have been important in developing the reach of the initiative. In contrast, the household stream is more dependent on open-ended sources over which SCHRI has less influence or control, such as the private sector and word of mouth.

Figure A1: How first heard of SCHRI

10. The use of the advisory service reflects the structure of the initiative, which provides different support mechanisms for community and household streams. The SCHRI development officer was used by over ninety per cent of community projects as a source of information and advice, as well as around ten per cent of household cases. Although the development officer is focused primarily on community projects, advice and guidance can be given on the less straightforward household projects. Households are generally referred to the telephone helpdesk for advice and guidance, which was used by around thirty per cent of households.

11. The SCHRI website was used as a source of information and guidance by a third of both household and community respondents, which underlines the importance of the website in disseminating information and providing advice and guidance to potential applicants. Over twenty per cent of all respondents also made use of other sources for advice and guidance. This focussed primarily on installers that were recognised as an important source of further technical advice on renewable technologies. This underlines the importance of the installers in the delivery of the initiative.

Figure A2: Sources used for information and advice

12. Figure A3 shows that the most common assistance provided to community projects by development officers was assistance with the grant application (76%) followed by guidance on project eligibility (58%) and advice on potential funding sources (47%). This underlines the strong process led function of the development officers in facilitating project development. The more technical aspects of the role are less well used, with only twenty per cent of community projects using the service for technical advice on renewable technologies.

13. Information on installers was one of the few areas where the advisory service was used more intensively by households compared to community organisations, and was the second most important type of assistance for householder after advice on the grant application. This underlines the importance of an independent source of information on installers, particularly for households, which can be provided through the SCHRI.

Figure A3: Type of information and advice provided by SCHRI advisory service

14. The level of satisfaction with the advisory service was very high among all respondents and relatively similar across both household and community streams. On a scale of one to ten, the scheme achieved an average rating of 8.5 for community and 8.6 for household projects. Generally respondents reported that the scheme benefited from not being overly bureaucratic, and the application procedures were relatively straightforward.

15. The use of the advisory service as a source of ongoing advice and guidance was also appreciated by a number of community organisations, particularly those that were keen to include renewable energy in a longer term development strategy.

16. Where the programme scored slightly lower, such as in relation to community projects in Aberdeen and North East, several respondents were frustrated about the lack of clarity regarding the eligibility of projects for funding. The tender procedure means that applicants may require to tender for contracts before SCHRI funding has been assured, which works against standard local authority procurement procedures. An 'in principal' agreement, to assure that funding will be available would remove a significant amount of uncertainty from the procedures.

17. The issue over community stream eligibility for funding and clarification if funding is available was also raised as an issue among accredited installers. This seems to be of particular concern in the lowland area, managed by EST, where the community stream is currently not able to fund any new projects, due to increasing demand from the household stream and outstanding funding commitments from the previous year.

Table A3: Rates of satisfaction among beneficiaries

18. The application guidance for community projects states that all applicants should consider energy efficiency measures in conjunction with the renewable energy project. Development officers are able to provide basic advice on energy efficiency measures, but the guidance states that a formal energy audit should be undertaken in relation to most projects, with applicants referred to the Scottish Energy Efficiency Office. All household applicants are offered an energy audit, which is delivered through the EST.

19. The proportion of beneficiaries where an energy audit was undertaken seems to be highest within the Highlands and Islands where over half of community projects also had an energy audit undertaken at the same time. In a number of cases, an energy audit was not applicable, such as in new build projects. However, the findings from the survey do suggest that there is scope to improve the level of co-ordination between energy efficiency measures and assistance with renewable technology projects. This would result in a much greater impact in terms of carbon displacement and fuel savings arising as a result of the programme.

Table A4: % projects where energy audit undertaken

20. Of those respondents where an energy audit had been undertaken, two thirds of community projects had implemented all of the recommended measures. The small amount of funding which has been allocated for energy efficiency measures among community groups is reported as being very valuable by both HIE and EST in encouraging these organisations, as funding is not available through other EST programmes which focus on businesses and households. Households were most likely to implement some (75%) rather than all (25%) of the recommended measures.

Table A5: Implementation of energy efficiency measures

Funding and leverage

21. The funding of community projects underlines the differing funding regimes between the Lowlands and the Highlands and Islands. A much higher proportion of project costs were funded through SCHRI in the Lowlands (60%) compared to the Highlands and Islands (40%). This underlines the greater opportunity for match funding sources in the Highlands and Islands, particularly from Europe, which accounted for ten per cent of total funding within the sample in the HIE area. Access to other UK central government funding projects was important in a small number of larger projects, all of which were within the Highlands and Islands.

Table A6: % of total funding sources

22. For those community projects that attracted funding from a third party, SCHRI funding was cited as being very important for nearly two thirds and quite important for one quarter of cases, in terms of securing additional funding from these sources. The SCHRI grant was generally the source of funding which was confirmed at the earliest stage, which provided a platform from which to leverage funding from other sources.

23. In terms of the household stream, all of the projects in the sample attracted a thirty per cent SCHRI grant, with the remainder paid for out of the householders own private funds.

Additionality and deadweight

24. Additionality assesses the extent to which something would have taken place without public sector intervention. The level of project additionality varies considerably between the community and households stream. Community projects exhibit much higher levels of additionality with over sixty per cent unlikely to have taken place without SCHRI funding. This compares to forty-five per cent in the household stream.

25. Over one quarter of projects in the household stream would have taken place in any case, compared to none of the community projects. The role of the development officers in appraising community project additionality ensures that projects that are likely to have proceeded without SCHRI funded can be sifted out. This contrasts with the household stream, where it would not be feasible to include project additionality as part of the assessment criteria, due to the standardised nature of the application procedures.

Figure A4: Project additionality

26. With regard to community projects, there was a similar level of full additionality on both technical and capital projects. In terms of partial additionality, capital projects were more likely to have taken place on a smaller scale/lower quality, while feasibility studies were more likely to have been delayed.

27. Deadweight is a concept closely linked with additionality. The level of deadweight relates to the proportion of the funding, which is non-additional. In this sense, some of the funding associated with the projects that would not have proceeded without the grant, may exhibit a certain level of deadweight, if they would have gone forward with a lower level of funding.

28. The survey findings suggest that the level of deadweight for community projects is only one per cent compared to nearly forty per cent of funding for the household stream. The ability of development officers to vary the level of grant in the community stream to minimise deadweight, underlines the value of this approach.

29. It is interesting to compare the level of deadweight across the technologies in the household stream. However, given the small number of cases in a number of technologies, caution should be taken in interpreting these figures.

30. Given that a standard thirty per cent grant is applied across all technologies, it is possible to compare this with the average minimum % of grant at which the projects would have been brought forward. Across all household cases, the average minimum level was eighteen per cent, which ranged between zero and thirty per cent among respondents. The technology with the lowest level was the Lerwick District Heating System, at twelve per cent, which resulted in the highest rate of deadweight at sixty per cent of total funding.

Table A7: Level of deadweight funding

Benefits

31. A number of practical benefits were cited by beneficiaries including a reduction in fuel consumption and lower maintenance costs associated with the renewable energy system. There was also the "feel good" factor associated with doing something to help the environment by reducing carbon emissions. Respondents that previously had relied upon diesel electricity generators and oil fired heating systems also highlighted an associated reduction in noise and odour when switching to the new system.

32. Overall, the vast majority of beneficiaries were very satisfied with the resultant benefits in terms of energy efficiency associated with the installation of the renewable energy system. For those households that were able to provide details of fuel savings, these ranged from a 23% to 50% reduction in fuel costs.

33. The ability of community projects to provide equivalent details was less straightforward, with many saying that this was difficult to assess, as many were new build projects, or were using the facility more intensively than previously. Generally, it was clear that many beneficiaries were not aware of the actual quantifiable benefits in terms of fuel and cost savings arising. Some community projects were in the process of undertaking an evaluation exercise, and for many it was still too early for a judgement to be made.

34. There have been significant wider community benefits arising in a wide range of projects funded through SCHRI. Many projects have raised awareness in the local community and acted as precedent for further interest in renewable energy. Several community organisations were now significantly more ambitious with regard to developing local renewable energy projects, having developed further confidence and community capacity though the successful completion of one particular project.

35. Housing associations highlighted the financial benefits to tenants as a result of reduced fuel consumption, which had contributed to tackling fuel poverty. Reduced ongoing running costs were also highlighted as a significant benefit to community based organisations, as the resultant savings could then be invested in other more productive local initiatives. Facilities, such as community halls could be better heated to an ambient temperature throughout the year, ensuring that buildings could be kept open during the winter and increasing the intensity of usage by the local community.

36. The significant contribution to community confidence was highlighted by a range of community groups. A number of projects had generated a very high profile, such as the worldwide interest in the PURE energy project in Unst, a pioneering hydrogen and wind system, or Westray Kirk, the first church in Scotland to obtain all its energy needs from renewable sources, which received a large amount of coverage in both the local and Scottish media. In some communities, SCHRI had also been important in contributing to sustainable community economic development; for example, funding solar heating as part of a wider initiative to upgrade the housing stock on the Isle of Gigha.

37. For projects in schools, there was significant value in integrating renewable energy and energy efficiency in the school curriculum, which had taken place in a number of cases, mostly in relation to the installation of wind turbines at a number of schools. These projects were raising awareness of the value of sustainable development and encouraging interest in alternative sources of energy. Weather stations have been installed in a number of these schools to raise awareness among pupils regarding how the system works in various weather conditions.

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