What 361 Energy CIC does

361 Energy CIC is a registered charity (No. 1211594) and Community Interest Company headquartered in Barnstaple, Northern Devon, United Kingdom, founded in December 2011 by Thomas Store and a group of local residents with energy and sustainability expertise. The organisation delivers free, independent energy advice and retrofit coordination services to homeowners, tenants, landlords, small businesses, farms, parish councils, and community organisations across Northern Devon and the Torridge district. Core offerings include home energy visits with free energy-efficient devices (LED bulbs, radiator reflectors, draft excluders), community drop-in advice clinics, business energy and carbon reviews, retrofit coordination on government schemes (Green Homes Grant LAD3, Home Upgrade Grant HUG1, Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund), the Future Farming Resilience programme for agricultural clients, and a Devon-wide Community Energy Consortium developing approximately 100 MW of community-owned solar capacity under a sister 361 Community Renewables initiative. The flagship annual Energy Fair in Barnstaple's Pannier Market attracts 1,200-2,000 visitors and showcases renewable energy, energy-saving technology, and electric vehicles.

The business model is non-commercial: end users receive services at no charge, with operating costs funded through a diversified portfolio of grants and statutory funding from the National Lottery Communities Fund, the Energy Voluntary Redress Scheme, Devon County Council, North Devon and Torridge District Councils, LEAP, the Northern Primary Care Collaborative Board, Ebico Trust, NDVS, and the Department of Energy and Climate Change. Distribution is delivered through a community-led go-to-market motion combining paid home visits, free drop-in clinics at partner venues (Age Concern, libraries, NDDH Fern Centre), referral pathways from healthcare providers, housing associations, and frontline workers, plus educational events and parish council workshops. 361 Energy is governed by a board of trustees/directors chaired by Dr Paul Rogers MEI and led operationally by its first Chief Executive, Joanna Howard, appointed in January 2025 alongside the organisation's conversion to registered charity status. Reported 2022/23 impact metrics include 870 home energy visits, ~£600k of household savings, 4:1 return on advice-service cost, 48 social housing retrofits, and cumulative resident savings exceeding £1 million since founding.

Name

361 Energy CIC

Legal name

361 Energy CIC Limited

Website

https://361energy.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

361 Energy CIC is a Northern Devon charity that provides free, independent energy advice, home visits, and retrofit coordination to residents, businesses, farms, and community organizations, funded by grants and local authorities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Energy Advisory Services

akta.pro primary industry

Climate Finance Strategy (CapEx planning, green finance, incentives & grants) (EUABAKAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Interconnection, Permitting & Grid Services for DERs (EUAMAJAH)

Keywords

• Home energy advice
• Fuel poverty support
• Retrofit coordination services
• Community energy projects
• Carbon footprint advisory

Headquarters

HQ city

Barnstaple

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Charitable Services (Free to End Users): 361 Energy operates as a registered charity (No. 1211594) providing free energy advice services funded by grants and donations. Revenue comes from funding organizations including National Lottery Communities Fund, government schemes, and local authority grants.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

361 Energy CIC provides free, independent energy advice to homeowners, tenants, landlords, businesses and community organisations across Northern Devon. Core services include home energy visits with free energy-saving devices, community drop-in advice clinics, business energy and carbon reviews, and coordination of government retrofit grants such as the Green Homes Grant and Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund. The organisation also develops community-owned renewable energy projects through the Devon Community Energy Consortium.

Product overview

361 Energy CIC is a registered charity and community interest company providing free, independent sustainable energy advice to homeowners, tenants, landlords, businesses, and community organisations throughout Northern Devon. The organisation operates three core service divisions (Residential, Business, and Community) offering home energy visits, energy advice clinics, business energy audits, retrofit planning, and community renewable energy development. Their portfolio includes the Save & Warm Program for home energy efficiency, the Warmer Homes project for vulnerable households, Climate Action Planning tools for parish councils, Smart Meter promotion with Smart Energy GB, and the 361 Community Renewables initiative for community-owned solar projects. Services are delivered through trained Home Energy Advisers via home visits, community drop-in sessions, events like the annual 361 Energy Fair, and partnerships with organisations including LEAP, National Energy Action, and Devon County Council.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Home Energy Visits Free home energy advice visits delivered by trained Home Energy Advisers to residents across Northern Devon. Advisers review energy usage, supply free energy-efficient devices (light bulbs, radiator reflectors, draft excluders), assist with energy supplier/tariff switching, and help residents access funding for insulation, boilers and solar panels.
• Energy Advice Clinics Community drop-in sessions offering face-to-face advice on managing energy bills, affording warmth, resolving billing issues, tackling damp and mould, and improving home energy efficiency. Held at libraries, Age Concern centres and other community venues throughout Northern Devon.
• Business Energy Advice Free advisory service for Devon-based businesses, farms and organisations covering energy and carbon reviews, recommendations for energy-saving measures, and carbon footprint calculations to help reduce energy costs and environmental impact.
• Community Support Education and community engagement programme helping residents, schools, parish councils and community groups learn how to reduce energy use, including events, workshops and climate action planning support.
• Community Renewable Energy Development of community-owned renewable energy projects where profits and financial benefits return to the local community. 361 Energy is a member of the Devon Community Energy Consortium, with approximately 100 MW of solar energy projects in the development pipeline.
• Retrofit Advice Service Retrofit planning and coordination service supporting households in making homes more energy efficient, including coordination of the UK Government's Green Homes Grant LAD3, Home Upgrade Grant HUG1 and Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund schemes for homeowners, private tenants and housing associations.
• Business Energy Audit Check Sheet A downloadable energy audit tool for SMEs to identify opportunities to save money and cut their carbon footprint.
• Climate Action Planning Toolset A 7-step climate action planning workbook and supporting resources to help parish councils and community groups create effective, science-based climate action plans.
• 361 Community Renewables A sister initiative focused on community-owned renewable energy development, currently developing solar energy projects across Devon through a Devon-wide Community Energy Consortium.
• Warmer Homes for Devon Tenants Project Project supporting private tenants in Devon with retrofit advice and assistance, managed as part of the Warmer Homes project funded by the Energy Voluntary Redress Scheme.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over £1 million saved by North Devon residents on energy bills (cumulative to 2019)
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• National Energy Action (NEA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational fuel poverty charity partnership for Fuel Poverty Awareness Day events and access to national resources and best practices for addressing fuel poverty
• LEAP (Local Energy Advice Partnership)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFunding partner for home energy advice services in 2022/23
• North Devon HomescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSocial housing partner for energy clinics and Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund retrofit projects; jointly delivered energy advice services
• North Devon Voluntary Services (NDVS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership on Warmer Homes project for vulnerable patients; NDVS leads the partnership project with referral pathways to 361 Energy
• Torridge District CouncilmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal authority partner providing funding and referrals for energy advice services in Torridge district
• North Devon District CouncilmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal authority partner providing funding and referrals for energy advice services
• Devon County CouncilmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerManaging authority for government retrofit schemes (Green Homes Grant LAD3, Home Upgrade Grant HUG1) with 361 Energy as Retrofit Coordinator
• Northern Primary Care Collaborative BoardcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerHealthcare partnership funder for home energy advice supporting vulnerable patients with health issues affected by cold homes
• Community Energy EnglandminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustry body membership providing networking and advocacy for community energy organizations
• Devon Community Energy NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDevon-wide consortium working on 100 MW of solar energy projects; 361 Energy is member organization
• Regen (formerly RegenSW)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSouthwest renewable energy organization partnered on Devon Community Energy Network Support project
• North Devon BiospherecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership on Sustainable Energy Action Plan and climate action initiatives in North Devon Biosphere Reserve area
• Plastic Free North DevonminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership through Sustainable Business Resource (SBR) program providing energy and carbon reviews for businesses

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Energy Saving Trust: National UK charity delivering household and community energy advice, retrofit support, and decarbonisation programmes — a scaled, national analogue of 361 Energy's advisory model.
• National Energy Action (NEA): National fuel poverty charity; broader remit across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, providing training, resources, and policy advocacy that 361 Energy draws on as a regional delivery partner.
• Carbon Trust: Established advisory organisation helping businesses and the public sector decarbonise — overlaps with 361 Energy's Business Energy Advice and carbon-footprinting services but at a much larger, multi-national scale.
• Ashden: UK climate charity accelerating clean energy and energy efficiency through grant-making and awards — overlaps thematically with 361 Energy's community renewables and efficiency work but operates nationally as a funder/intermediary.

Direct peers

• Marches Energy Charity: Small regional energy charity covering Herefordshire and surrounding areas offering home energy visits, advice clinics, and fuel poverty casework — a near-direct operational analogue to 361 Energy in a different UK region.
• Centre for Sustainable Energy: Bristol-based charity delivering independent energy advice, fuel poverty support, retrofit coordination, and community energy programmes — the closest direct peer to 361 Energy's model and regional charitable footprint.
• Groundwork UK: Federation of community-environmental charities running place-based energy advice, climate action, and retrofit programmes across English regions, comparable in scale and delivery style to 361 Energy.

Others

• Community Energy England: Industry body representing community energy organisations; 361 Energy is itself a member — comparable as an ecosystem counterpart rather than a service competitor.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses1 record

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/361Energy
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/361energy

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about 361 Energy CIC