Community energy projects can deliver lasting benefits across Scotland – but they need enough time to get off the ground. Giving the Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES) a multi-year budget, rather than the current annual cycle, would help communities plan with confidence, recruit the right people and deliver projects at a realistic pace.
With pre‑budget scrutiny underway, ahead of the Scottish Budget for 2027–28 being presented to the Scottish Parliament in early December, we’re calling on the Scottish Government to not just meet its manifesto commitment of £15 million a year for CARES but crucially to also commit that funding on a multi-year basis through to the end of the parliamentary term. This wouldn’t financially affect the Scottish Government’s existing budget but would allow grants and delivery work to run across financial years instead of being squeezed by spending deadlines linked to the financial year.
Why annual budgets hold projects back
- Some projects never get started. The window between a funding round opening, an award being made and the year-end spending deadline can be too short. Faced with an unrealistic timetable, some communities simply decide not to apply.
- Awards can go unspent. Even when funding is approved, communities may not be able to draw it down before the deadline.
- Communities struggle to build capacity. Short awards make it difficult to fund development posts, recruit well and retain staff. The challenge is especially acute in rural and island areas, where the recruitment pool may already be small and candidates are unlikely to leave secure jobs for short-term roles.
- Rushed delivery costs more. March deadlines can push installation work into winter, increasing the risk of delays and forcing communities to pay a premium for faster delivery. Island communities can be particularly affected.
What multi-year funding would make possible
- Stronger local teams. Community organisations could fund posts over several years and build the skills and capacity needed to develop projects.
- More ambitious projects. Larger schemes would have time to secure consents and planning permission before installation begins.
- Better value and smoother delivery. Projects could be procured and delivered at a realistic pace, avoiding unnecessary winter working, delays and cost premiums.
- Greater continuity and expertise. CARES delivery partners could offer better job security, retain experienced staff and invest in the teams that support communities across Scotland.
We already know longer-term funding works
Scotland has seen the benefits of longer-term community funding before. The Climate Challenge Fund supported multi-year activity and helped communities demonstrate positive impact across the country. Community energy projects could achieve the same – and go further. Because they can generate ongoing income for local communities, multi-year CARES funding would be a strategic investment with benefits that continue long after the initial award. It would also help maximise the public return from Scotland’s renewable energy sector.
The wider UK picture makes the case even stronger. Great British Energy has indicated that community energy funding in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will operate across financial years, with recently announced funding expected to run until March 2028. In Scotland, GBE funding will be administered, at least for now, via CARES. If CARES continues to give only annual funding here while comparable projects elsewhere in the UK can access funding across financial years, Scottish communities risk being put at a disadvantage.
A multi-year CARES settlement would give communities the certainty to plan, the time to deliver and the confidence to be ambitious. It would help Scotland maintain its leadership in community energy – and turn public funding more into more effective community energy projects, with all the local and national benefits that they bring.
