Would you like to join a Government-supported trial of our new Energy Local Club which could help you save money on your energy bills?
Energy Local is a new way to enable local communities and small scale renewable generators to work together to manage local electricity demand and supply, to encourage more effective use of electricity, reduce bills and carbon emissions. This is achieved through the setup of an Energy Local Club, and through new relationships with energy suppliers, smart meters and technology to give you a helping hand in how you use power.
We are currently trialling our new Energy Local Club as part of a Government-supported programme to develop a range of products and services which help households like yours to use less energy. This could save households money on their energy bills and also benefit the environment.
We would like to invite you to take part in this trial, which will take place from January 2021 to December 2022. This would mean we will need you to agree to share some data with our Government-appointed independent research partners. This is so that they can carry out research to explore how homes benefit from being part of Energy Local Club.
Please read through the following information about the data that will be needed and how it will be handled and used securely and confidentially. If you would like further information at any point, please contact one of the organisations in the Contact Details section at the end.
If, after reading the information presented below, you would like to take part then please complete the Consent Form at the end.
How you can help evaluate the Energy Local Club
The Department of Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has commissioned a study (the ‘evaluation’) to learn about how the Energy Local Club affects members’ energy use and bills. Evidence from this evaluation will help to inform the development of future policy to support household energy efficiency. BEIS has appointed the research company Ipsos MORI and its approved partners to do this evaluation.
Accessing smart meter data
Part of the evaluation is to check how the Energy Local Club helps you to change the ways and times at which you use energy to reduce your bills. To do this, Ipsos MORI needs to access data on how much energy your household uses. This data is held in your smart meter. If you choose to participate in the evaluation, Ipsos MORI will access the energy data stored on your smart meter using a service provided by University College London (UCL).
If you provide your consent using the Consent Form in the link below, then we will share your name and address with UCL.
UCL will then send you a letter with information on how you can grant them access to your smart meter data for the purpose of evaluation. No one will need to visit your address and your energy bills will not be affected by this in any way.
Accessing other energy data apart from my smart meter data
To understand how the energy use changes over time in households trialling the Energy Local Club, Ipsos MORI would like to look at how you used energy before the trial, including before you had a smart meter installed. Please confirm in the Consent Form below whether you give your permission for Ipsos MORI to access your past energy use information through your energy supplier. This information will be shared securely with the Ipsos MORI team and only used for the purposes of conducting this research.
How can you give feedback on the Energy Local Club?
We would be grateful if you also grant your permission to share your contact details (name, address, email and telephone) with Ipsos MORI so that they can invite you to provide feedback on how your home uses energy and on the Energy Local Club. Over the next year, you may be invited to take part in a short telephone survey and an interview.
Do I have to take part?
Participation in the evaluation is entirely voluntary and, if you choose to participate, you will be able to withdraw your participation at any time without giving a reason – see below for how to do this. By giving your permission to share your contact details now, you will still be under no obligation to take part at a later date. We can assure you that your details will be securely shared with, and held by, Ipsos MORI and UCL and only used for the purposes of the evaluation.
What if I want to withdraw from the evaluation?
You can do this by contacting any of the persons listed at the bottom of this page. You do not need to give a reason to do so and you can withdraw at any time. If you withdraw, all parties including Ipsos MORI and UCL will delete any identifying information held relating to you.
Will my data ever be sold or used for commercial purposes?
No, the data accessed by Ipsos MORI and UCL will never be sold to third parties and will only be used for the purposes described here.
Data Protection Privacy Notice
The categories of personal data processed by Ipsos MORI are: your name, address, email address, and telephone number. According to data protection legislation, Ipsos MORI is a Data Controller for this personal data.
Ipsos MORI will only process your personal data as long as required for the purposes of the evaluation. They will keep your data secure, store your contact details separately from data used for research, and minimise the processing of personal data wherever possible, in accordance with data protection legislation. Your personal data will be securely deleted once the project finishes (planned for December 2022).
Further information about your rights, and how Ipsos MORI use participant information, is available at:
https://www.ipsos.com/ipsos-mori/en-uk/privacy-data-protection
What if you have a query or something goes wrong?
Ipsos MORI is not responsible for the Energy Local Club. If you have any queries, or wish to make a complaint about how Ipsos MORI processes your data for this project, you can contact them using the details provided below.
What if I want to make a formal complaint?
If you feel that your complaint has not been handled to your satisfaction then you can contact Ipsos MORI at compliance@ipsos.com. If you have any questions about data protection, or if you would like to contact someone about your rights, you can contact Ipsos MORI at compliance@ipsos.com.
If you remain unsatisfied, you have the right to lodge a formal complaint with the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO). Full details may be accessed on the complaints section of the ICO's website: https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/
Contact Details
Mary Gillie - Energy Local CIC
Email: Mary@energylocal.co.uk Website: www.energylocal.co.uk
Address: Glaslyn Ffordd Y Parc, Parc Menai, Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales, LL57 4FE
Ipsos MORI
Email: compliance@ipsos.com Website: www.ipsos.com
Address: Ipsos MORI, 3 Thomas More Square, London E1W 1YW
Please complete the Consent Form on the next screen if you would like to participate in the evaluation.