Collaboratory Researcher Profiles
Project Title: Energy for All: Spreading the benefits and broadening engagement in community energy projects in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland
What were you doing before starting this PhD?
Immediately before starting my PhD, I was working shifts for a major online grocery retailer, chosen to fit around my wife’s work and caring for our daughter. I feel incredibly lucky to have had the time to build such a strong bond with her; as she’s growing into her next step in education, it’s freed up time for me to do the same.
My wider background is engineering-based. I started in automotive, moved through mechanical engineering and systems/controls, and ended up working in electrical. My last role in the field was with an independent electrical wholesaler, combining technical sales with logistics and being involved in some extremely interesting projects
What motivated you to apply for this specific PhD project?
The Collaboratory Research Hub offered a realistic path back to higher education for someone with a family and a non-traditional CV. I was drawn to Collab’s focus on capability and potential rather than just following a standard academic track.
Community energy specifically excites me because it represents a ‘multi-win’ scenario: it can lower bills, drive local investment, and build community confidence, all while addressing the climate crisis.
What difference do you hope to make in Leicester through this research?
I would like this work to help shift the move to renewables from something that’s often easiest for the already-resourced, into something that is practically accessible to communities and people who would most benefit from lower costs and increased local resilience.
For example: renters, people without driveways, residents of flats, households on tight budgets, and communities where time, language, or trust barriers can make engagement harder. Community approaches, when done well, can open routes to shared access and shared benefits through collective projects, trusted local organisations, and models that don’t depend on being able to invest heavily upfront.
Locally, I hope the research produces usable guidance and evidence that helps partners in the region improve how they engage communities, how they design co-benefits, and how they communicate them, so more places can take part and feel the value.
What do you hope to be doing in 5 years’ time?
Personally, I hope to be in a stable place where my family is thriving, and I’ve built a career that feels meaningful day-to-day.
Professionally, I’d like to be working in a role that sits at the intersection of community, evidence, and delivery. For example, with local authorities, a community energy organisation, or through further applied research in a practical partnership, helping to design and scale approaches that make the energy transition fairer and more locally beneficial.
If I can contribute to practical improvements in how communities are engaged, how co-benefits are designed and shared, and how projects are supported from idea to delivery, I’ll feel like the PhD has done what it should.