about us
Our Work
The EARN website is managed by Community Action Northumberland (CAN), 
a registered charity dedicated to supporting rural communities across Northumberland.
CAN has a long-standing commitment to reducing fuel poverty, improving household energy efficiency and lowering carbon emissions in rural Northumberland.
Our award-winning Warm Hubs programme has been recognised as a model of good practice by both Ofgem and the Prince’s Countryside Fund (as featured in the Village Survival Guide, 2019). Warm Hubs offer a network of welcoming, energy-efficient community venues where residents can access practical energy advice and support. These hubs are supported by a small but committed group of trained volunteers.
In 2022, we received funding from the Energy Industry Voluntary Redress Scheme to launch a dedicated energy advice project—EARN (Energy Advice in Rural Northumberland). Through EARN, we provide free, independent information and help to residents across the county.
Building on the strong foundation of this project, we’ve expanded our team and services to include expert advice on domestic renewable technologies.
We are proud to continue our work thanks to support from the National Lottery Community Fund and Northern Gas Networks. With their funding, we are helping more individuals and communities face rising energy costs, stay warm at home, and reduce reliance on fossil fuels—cutting both bills and carbon emissions.
Our Projects
The Climate Action in Rural North East (CAIRN) project, continues to deliver practical, community-based energy and climate support through our expert team:
Our Climate Action Officers continue to:
- Provide one-to-one household advice and support through free home visits.
- Attend information events and roadshows
- Offer workshops to community groups and provide training to volunteers joining our volunteer Energy Agent network
- Work closely with and support the Warm Hubs across our county.
CAIRN also works closely with communities to:
- Understand and measure local carbon impacts
- Identify practical ways to reduce energy use, costs and carbon emissions.
- Build long-term resilience through sustainability planning
Our latest initiative, Powering People, supports households who have no electric or gas connections. Our Off Grid Energy Advisers provide:
- Energy audits and advice
- Support with grid connections and renewable installations
Our Community Building Energy Officer focuses on:
- Energy audits for community buildings
- Recommending energy efficiency upgrades and promoting sustainability initiatives
- Helping to cut energy use and carbon footprints
Community Building Energy Audits
Our team also supports CAN’s solar-powered communities project – Northumberland Community Energy Ltd (NCEL). Helping community buildings to reduce energy costs, lower emissions, boost resilience, and even generate income through solar energy.
The over-arching aim of our projects is to support energy consumers in hard-to-reach rural Northumberland who are disadvantaged through remoteness with no connection to the gas grid and, in the case of 350 households, the electricity grid. Residents in these locations frequently struggle to access existing services and need additional support from trusted community-based sources.
The incidence of fuel poverty is huge given the preponderance of low incomes, poor dwelling construction and cost of heating oil. We aim to build on our existing, trusted network of community-centered Warm Hubs as the focus for support and advice for the long term.
