Wedmore Community Power Co-operative

Chris Jonas

Chairman

Chris Jonas has lived in Wedmore for over 20 years and was an initial investor in the Wedmore Community Power Co-operative.

I am the joint owner of a consultancy firm working in the waste management, recycling and bioenergy sector. We provide support to developers, funders and investors in various waste and energy related projects so I am very familiar with the need to decarbonise much of the way we live and believe community energy is a key part of that journey. I am reasonably familiar with the workings of the energy markets and the need to ensure long-term asset performance.

Previous roles have included working in the waste and recycling sector for over 25 years including as a board director at Viridor and various joint venture / subsidiary project companies. I have held other senior roles, both commercial and operational, in waste recycling, collection, treatment and disposal. I have been a Governor at Wedmore First School and supported many other Wedmore community initiatives.

Derek Logan

Director

Derek retired from a 40-year career in banking in 2009 and has subsequently taken on a number of non-executive financial roles both in the UK and overseas. Experienced in financial management, forecasting and project finance. A resident of Wedmore, he was appointed as a director by the founder members early in 2014.

"Being part of a project for the community by the community is very rewarding. In my experience to deliver completion on time and in budget is rarely achieved. The challenge now is to ensure both the investors and the wider community get the benefits."

David Hopkins

Director

An active member of Green Wedmore since arriving in the village nearly 17 years ago, David and his wife Venetia have been investors in the Community Power Co-op from the outset. David says “The co-op is not only a key building block in helping to take Wedmore towards a zero-carbon future, but through the shared nature of the enterprise and generation of grants that help green village endeavours, it also plays an important role in helping to create and to maintain our community”.

David’s other interests in the village include chairing the Friends of St. Mary’s Wedmore (The Wedmore 40/30, The Clash of the Choirs etc.), driving the community bus and occasional involvement with Wedmore Theatre.

David has also been on the grants committee of the Community Power Co-op but will stand down from this if elected as a director.

Peter Pettifor

Director

I am a self-employed landlord with a small portfolio of rental property in Stratford-upon-avon. I am married with a family of three boys 10, 6, and 1 year old. I don’t have a lot of relevant experience but I did stand on the board of Community Energy Warwickshire for a couple of years. I have been interested in renewables for some years and have invested in a large number of projects scattered across Great Britain over the past eight years.

Peter Woodward

Director

I was living in Wedmore when the CPC was formed. As a founding investor I recall volunteering to tighten a myriad nuts and bolts on the new solar array. I now live in Marshfield, South Gloucestershire, where I am Chair of Sustainable Marshfield and Co-ordinator of our Eco Church at St Mary’s initiative

My job as a facilitator involves helping organisations work together at European level on sustainability topics such as regenerative economics, climate change, circular economy and biodiversity. I am willing to serve as a Director to support those taking community action and to help make this a positive and transformative experience for all.

Steve Mewes

Board Member

Steve was born and brought up in Wedmore and now lives nearby in Heath House. He is the Somerset Local Nature Partnership and Advocacy Manager at Somerset Wildlife Trust, involved in advocacy to restore nature and prepare for Climate Change in this stunning county. His background is in policy, quality assurance and project management in the renewable energy, internet, education, charity, food and travel industries.

He was a founder and for all but 2 years the chair of Green Wedmore, formed in 2006. The group aims to inform and promote environmental projects in the Wedmore area with the long-term goal of helping the community find a more sustainable future.

Steve is also a founding director and previous chair of Wedmore Community Power Co-Operative, previous member of Reimagining the Levels and Chair of Somerset Climate Action Network. His passion is working towards a positive low-carbon future in the county he loves.

“For the community on the Isle of Wedmore to make its contribution to producing its own power, with local investors and a community benefit to help others in need, means everything to me.”