Achievements & Successes

Bryony is also going to move ahead with the community project, in the hope that might get people involved. "I'd like to move ahead and create a practical project that people can actually do, rather than just talk about".

Ideas so far include building a bike shed out of recycled materials, or building a pizza oven in the garden. "If we can get a permanent structure that a group of people have been involved in making, then I'll count that as a success".

Natural Specification

So far, the biggest success has been the installation of the energy meter. “The energy monitor was one of the suggestions and it’s been very useful in finding out where we waste energy. Things like switching off and unplugging devices, boiling less water in the kettle and making sure that when I’m using the oven, I’m fully using it rather than just for one dish. I know I do a lot of little things like that because of the meter which I didn’t do before. I’m thinking more in advance.

It’s definitely been the most useful thing so far. It really makes you think about what you’re doing and it’s also a win win situation because you’re cutting down on your fuel bills while at the same time reducing the energy demand and therefore helping reduce emissions” she says.

Sally’s biggest achievement is being resistant to putting on the heating. “I’ve wanted to put it on but I’ve managed so far. That’s my greatest struggle”. The reduction in energy costs to the household has been another positive impact of the project. “We’re also growing more vegetables for ourselves and having the mindset of eating what’s available in the garden rather than thinking ‘I’m bored with that, I’ll go and get something else’” she says. “I’ve become more creative in my cooking as a result”. Sally’s also using information from the website, when she visits it, to add to the transition window that she has, which displays what’s going on and the themes they’re working on.