No sign yet (thank­fully!) that the Government’s Low Car­bon Invest­ment Fund is at risk of ‘sav­age cuts’.

On Monday, the Depart­ment of Energy and Cli­mate Change (DECC) launched its new Low Car­bon Com­munit­ies Chal­lenge, which con­sists basic­ally of a £10 mil­lion pot that com­munit­ies can apply to for fund­ing for their own low-carbon ini­ti­at­ives – which might be a hous­ing ret­ro­fit scheme, a bio­mass plant, or even elec­tric vehicle char­ging points.

Up to 20 com­munit­ies will be selec­ted as the lucky winners.

It’s a good scheme, under­pinned by a ‘spe­cial­ist sup­port squad’ made up of part­ners with expert­ise from inside and out­side gov­ern­ment – includ­ing The Energy Sav­ings Trust, The Car­bon Trust, WRAP, and the Third Sector.

So let’s hope DECC is over­whelmed by applications!