Moseley is a town with a population of approximately 20,000 people. Their SusMo Green Streets community consists of a church, a school, a local allotment pavilion, a Mosque and 20 residential homes within the community.

The project is popular within the community and has been supported by a number of local organisations, All are hoping that the Green Streets project will be a solid starting point for the expansion of energy saving advice in the community, leading to energy efficient improvements in homes, businesses and community buildings and to changes in behaviour which will save money and help to save our planet.

Substantial progress has now been made towards this goal. Moseley CofE School has submitted their planning application for their Solar PV panels and should receive a decision within the next eight weeks. The school has also put a 'sustainability action plan' into place. The plan lays out a model to support positive environmental change which includes growing food, improving biodiversity in the grounds, reducing waste through composting and recycling, working on wider sustainability through the Extended Schools Cluster, and a Walking Bus to discourage car use.

The 248-plot Moor Green allotment site has also shifted into top gear, using its allocated funds to become the proud owners of a 1.26 kWp PV array. Like Moseldy CofE school the site (managed by MADAHAL) has also developed a sustainability action plan to continue the good work.

Both St. Mary's Church and Hamza Mosque were seeking planning permission for the installation of roof mounted photovoltaic (PV) systems to generate electricity, some of which could be fed back into the grid, generating income via the Feed in Tariff. We are proud to be able to announce that following a decision by the Diocese, St Mary's Church has been granted permission to install these panels, which is great news for the community and, of course, the environment! Hamza Mosque still has the decision pending but we hope to see the plans approved in the not too distant future.

Finally, Moseley & District Churches Housing Association, a community-based provider of housing and care, put forward ten homes that were in need of energy efficiency improvements. In addition, St Mary's Church nominated three, and Hamza Mosque nominated four private sector households that would benefit from energy efficiency improvements. These households have now benefited from the installation of the following energy saving measures:

• 1 solar thermal system complete with two pending

• Smart Meters (currently awaiting installation)

• 12 loft 'top-ups' (insulation)

• 6 new energy efficient boilers

• 1564 energy efficient gadgets including (including radiator panels, eco kettles, standby savers, energy monitors, pipe lagging and cylinder jackets)

Next week we will travel to Scotland to visit the Eileen Easdale community, who, like all of our communities, have been working hard get the most out of their Green Streets membership. Tune in next week to see what they have achieved.