Charlie Edwards – Project Manager, SSEN

Charlie is leading customer engagement and domestic demand side response in SSEN’s future network department and is working actively on approaches to move initiatives from SAVE into SSEN’s flexibility services and business as usual operations. Charlie has 5 years of experience at SSEN, preceded by a degree in economics and geography and is developing sills in behavioural economics to further support a sustainable future for energy systems.

Maciej Fila – Project Engineer, SSEN

Maciej is leading technical and modelling aspects of SAVE and enabling transition of project’s learning to business as usual operations. He is also leading LEAN project and actively supporting EV strategy. Maciej has 15 years of experience in the electricity industry with the focus on innovation in protection, voltage control, network modelling, technical losses and power quality.

Dario Minissale – Project Modelling Analyst, SSEN

Dario is responsible for model testing, data interpolation and data acquisition, with 2 years’ experience as data/GIS analyst at SSEN. Dario manages datasets from various sources, producing project analysis, maps and models. With a master’s degree in GIS & Environmental management and a degree in geology and risk management, offers a wide range of skills to the project.

Dr Thomas Rushby – Research Fellow University of Southampton (UoS)

Tom led on trial analysis for the SAVE project at UoS. He completed his doctoral training at the ESRC DTC, UoS on the interdisciplinary Energy, Environment and Resilience pathway and has 7-years’ experience working across the social sciences and engineering disciplines in mixed-methods research into energy systems including the Ofgem LCNF-funded SAVE project and the RCUK funded Community-based initiatives in energy saving project. He was previously based at the University of Surrey working on the EPSRC funded wholeSEM project to build and link interdisciplinary whole-systems energy models and to respond to strategic policy-related modelling challenges.

Elizabeth Steele – Senior Consultant in DNV GL’s Sustainable Energy Use team

Elizabeth served as the trial design lead for the SAVE project and led the development of methodologies for the Energy Efficiency, TOU Price Incentives and Engagement Messaging trials. She has over 10 years of experience in the energy industry, focusing on creating and evaluating energy efficiency programmes.

Stacey Hughes – Project Research and Field Work Manager, BMG Research

Stacey is responsible for all research requirements for SAVE and is the principal point of contact between the project and the participants. With more than 12 years research experience, the vast majority of this being agency side tracking studies, Stacey brings a wealth of knowledge to the practical elements of obtaining personal and lifestyle information from participants to support the energy data received from transmitters installed in the home.

Erika Emeny – Experienced Finance Officer and General Business Manager

Erika provided expertise on operation and issue resolution relating to the project monitoring equipment. Erika has experience in manufacturing and service organisations and start up enterprises. Specialising in the utility industry, with specific expertise in business optimisation, project management and re-financing activities.

Judi Sellwood – Director, Neighbourhood Economics

As well as managing the SAVE Community Energy Coaching trial, Judi currently supports the development of a Resilient Communities programme in Flintshire and a pan-Wales Entrepreneurship Promotion programme within disadvantaged communities on behalf of the Welsh Government. Judi has a wide experience of partnership development supporting corporate organisations to engage more effectively with communities. Judi’s work is underpinned by the conviction that local regeneration is only truly sustainable when community driven.

John Every – Director, Neighbourhood Economics

Dr Ben Anderson – Principal Research Fellow in the University of Southampton’s Faculty of Engineering

Ben is currently seconded to the University of Otago’s Centre for Sustainability undertaking the outgoing phase of a three year Marie-Curie Global Fellowship. He lead the design and recruitment of the SAVE household sample and was previously involved in the RCUK ‘DEMAND’ End User Energy Demand Centre, the Sustainable Practices Research Group and lead the ESRC SDAI ‘Census2022’ project which assessed the potential value of smart meter data for deriving population statistics. He is a regular consultant to UK and NZ energy sector commercial and public policy analysts.

Professor AbuBakr Bahaj (FICE, FIET, FRSA, MInstP, CPhys)

Bakr leads the 55-strong Energy and Climate Change Division and the Sustainable Energy Research Group at the University of Southampton, where he completed his PhD, progressing from a researcher to a Personal Chair in Sustainable Energy. For more than 30 years, Professor Bahaj has pioneered sustainable energy research and established the energy theme within the University. He is the academic lead on the SAVE project with further detail including other major research programmes and publications can be found at www.energy.soton.ac.uk

Professor Patrick James – Professor of Energy and Buildings within Engineering and Physical Sciences at the University of Southampton

Patrick provided specialist expertise and analytical guidance on the project. His research is based on understanding energy use in the built environment whether this is at home, at work or at a broader urban scale. He is a specialist in micro-generation technologies including solar thermal, photo-voltaic, micro-wind and micro-CHP.

Paul Morris – Principal Consultant EA Technology

Paul provided the network and pricing model. Paul has 18 years of experience in electricity networks with a strong focus on network operations. Paul has a combination of skill sets from real time operations on active networks and long-term investment planning. Paul to offers a practical approach to solving existing and future network management and investment problems to governments, network owners and private investors.

Rob Britton – Knowledge Analyst, SSEN

Rob was responsible for SAVE events and dissemination activities. He has worked for Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) since 2009 in an operational role involved with the vegetation management around the Network. For the last 2 years Rob has been part of the SSEN Future Networks Team assisting in the delivery of project tasks to the business and ensuring a successful transition from an innovation idea through to a successful project being adopted by business as usual teams.

Malcolm Prince, Winchester City Council

"The SAVE Project was very successful at harnessing the support of existing groups and organisations in Kings Worthy, encouraging and enabling them to take on board the energy agenda through their own routine activities. Rather than trying to reinvent the wheel, it has used to advantage the mature network that already exists to deliver its messages."

Jenny Elliot, Minister at Shirley Warren Action Church

"The SAVE Project has totally transformed Shirley Warren – it has been the catalyst for action – bringing together local people to deliver positive change in their own community as well as achieve reductions in peak demand. A real win/win. We’re so glad we got involved." - Jenny Elliot, Minister at Shirley Warren Action Church

Adam Goulden, tEC Chief Executive

“The SAVE Project has allowed us to work closely with some amazing people, helping them to form a constituted community group and, with them, deliver a variety of events and activities which have achieved real outcomes for local residents. We hope to continue to work with those groups as part of the legacy of this Project.”

Jason Light, Eastleigh Borough Council

“The SAVE Coaching approach has successfully demonstrated how you can support people to understand an issue and empower them to seek their own solutions which can be different for each person and can change over time. This makes coaching much more resilient than a traditional marketing approach as it provides people with the flexibility to respond to changing situations.”

Paul Ciniglio, Formally First Wessex Housing Association

“Although initially sceptical about what the coaching approach could achieve I have been impressed with the outcomes of the trial – the way in which the Project successfully engaged with the communities; the messaging used; giving the communities a tool kit to make peak demand/energy efficiency and what to do about it understandable. In particular I feel that this approach and ‘toolkit’ would be of use to help other communities – to empower them to change for the better.”

Ben Earl, Southern Water - Water Efficiency Manager

“The novel approach of the Coaching trial to working with stakeholders has shown the benefits of breaking down the barriers between agencies and the positive benefits of collaborative working to approach the shared challenges we face. I have been so impressed by the success of this approach that I am working with partners from within the gas and energy utilities to look at ways of continuing to work together by pooling our resources to collectively benefit communities.”