A message from the Chair
Cllr Caroline Baxter, Chair, Greater Brighton Economic Board
Welcome to the latest Sussex Energy update.
As this newsletter is being published during Community Energy Fortnight (1 to 14 July), it’s a timely opportunity to celebrate the vital role that community energy organisations are playing in Sussex’s energy future.
Sussex is home to one of the UK’s strongest community energy sectors, helping tackle fuel poverty, enabling communities to jointly own renewable energy assets, and ensuring more of the benefits of the energy transition are retained locally.
Alongside continuing delivery work, Sussex Energy is increasingly focused on strengthening energy security, attracting investment and ensuring Sussex is well positioned as the new Sussex & Brighton Strategic Authority develops.
What makes Sussex Energy particularly exciting is that it has become a genuinely Sussex-wide partnership, bringing together local authorities, businesses, universities, the NHS and community energy organisations around a shared ambition. Together, we’re developing projects, building partnerships and creating the conditions to improve energy resilience, support skilled local jobs and unlock investment that benefits communities across Sussex.
If you’d like to learn more about the Sussex Energy mission and our vision for the region, I’d encourage you to read the recent feature interview in The Sussex Green Edit, “From rooftops to resilience: the mission to make Sussex energy-neutral by 2040”, which explores why Sussex Energy was established, what it aims to achieve and how residents, businesses and organisations can get involved.
Thank you to everyone contributing their time, expertise and enthusiasm to this growing partnership. Together, we’re helping build a stronger, more resilient and prosperous energy future for Sussex.
Here’s a round-up of what’s been happening.
New Community Energy Communications Toolkit Now Live
To celebrate Community Energy Fortnight, with the help of an intern from the University of Sussex, Bruno D’Orta, we have developed a bank of non-branded, ready-to-use content designed to help organisations raise awareness of the incredible community energy work taking place across Sussex and create a stronger, more coordinated voice for the region’s energy transition.
The toolkit is now available. We hope it helps organisations across the region amplify messaging about community energy, celebrate local success stories, and inspire even more people to get involved in community energy.
One View – Map of Low Carbon Energy Activity in Sussex
A University of Brighton Master’s student, Aadarsha Dhakal, working alongside the Net Zero team at Brighton & Hove City Council, has developed an interactive map of scaled energy-decarbonisation activity across Sussex.
The map, which uses data from government and electricity operator open sources, provides a consolidated view of energy activity across the region and will help:
- showcase projects
- inspire replication
- encourage collaboration
- raise public awareness
Work is now underway to publish the dashboard through the Greater Brighton website, but take a sneak peek at the development version here: Energy Decarbonisation Projects Dashboard.
One Voice – A Shared Energy Vision for Sussex
Sussex Energy has been developing the Sussex & Brighton Energy Brief to help inform the emerging Sussex & Brighton Strategic Authority.
The Brief highlights that energy is about more than reducing carbon emissions. It is fundamental to:
- improving energy security
- reducing long-term energy costs for households and businesses
- attracting investment into Sussex
- creating skilled local jobs
- delivering the infrastructure needed for future economic growth
It also identifies practical priorities for the Strategic Authority during its first two years, including:
- developing a Sussex-wide energy plan
- building a pipeline of investable energy projects
- attracting regional and national investment
- accelerating solar, heat networks and other local energy programmes
- strengthening green skills through colleges, universities and employers
- working with organisations across Sussex to coordinate delivery
It is estimated that Sussex & Brighton could support around 24,000 jobs in the net zero economy, based on population-scaled national estimates. Alongside this, Sussex Energy is continuing discussions with the Strategic Authority about how the programme could become a future regional priority.
Solar Across Sussex
The first phase of the Solar Across Sussex programme is underway, aiming to accelerate the delivery of large-scale solar generation in Sussex.
Consultants Abigail Dombey and Graeme Maclean are assessing the realistic potential for both rooftop and ground-mounted solar across Sussex, taking into account planning, environmental and grid constraints, while also engaging stakeholders to identify the practical barriers slowing delivery.
Future energy scenarios suggest Sussex will require around 1,130 MW of large-scale solar by 2040, illustrating both the scale of the opportunity and the importance of coordinated regional delivery.
The work highlights that, while rooftop solar has an important role with a potential of 87MW from all large roofs in the region, achieving the levels of renewable generation needed for regional energy resilience will require a combination of rooftop and appropriately located ground-mounted solar.
The outputs from this stage will include a list of potential solar sites for both ground-mount and rooftop solar, alongside a summary of common obstacles.
Over the summer, the next phase will be worked out on how to progress this work with local partners.
Sussex Energy Forum – Working Together Across Sussex
Our next Sussex Energy Forum takes place on 14 July 2026, from 1pm to 5pm, hosted in partnership with the University of Sussex.
The Forum continues to bring together organisations working across energy in Sussex to strengthen collaboration and share knowledge.
This year’s session will:
- provide regional energy collaboration updates
- deliver partner presentations and perspectives
- shape next steps for collective delivery
This event is fully booked, but if you’d like to join the waitlist, register here: Sussex Energy Forum Tickets, Tuesday 14 July • 1 PM – 5 PM | Eventbrite.
If you have any feedback, know of something to be included in future updates or would like to be added to or removed from future Sussex Energy update mails, send an email to greaterbrighton@brighton-hove.gov.uk.