Wexford Town SEC: Driving a Just Transition Through Community Action

Background

The Wexford Town Sustainable Energy Community (SEC) was established in December 2021 by a dedicated group of volunteers determined to address climate change and promote a just transition to sustainable energy use. Their vision is simple yet powerful: “Think Global, Act Local” to make Wexford Town a sustainable, energy-efficient, and environmentally friendly place for everyone.

The SEC’s mission is to reduce energy usage and reliance on fossil fuels through awareness, empowerment, and direct action. Key focus areas include housing, a just transition, and using local energy champions.

The Wexford Town SEC won the ‘Inspirational Sustainable Energy Community’ Award at SEAI’s Energy Awards in November 2025. This was a huge achievement for the SEC and acknowledged the group’s passion and commitment to sustainability and community over the years.

The Project

The Wexford Town SEC identified Southend, a locality in Wexford Town with high levels of disadvantage (as per POBAL Index 2022), as a priority area for action. To better understand the community’s energy use and their needs, the group distributed in-depth surveys to 80 households, achieving an impressive 86% response rate.

The survey results revealed two key insights:

• Residents were interested in energy issues but lacked knowledge on how to address them.
• Many households relied on open coal fires for heating. Open fires lose a lot of heat up the chimney and are not energy efficient. They also burn fossil fuels creating more carbon emissions than other heat sources.  

This research underscored the urgent need for awareness and education around energy use and SEAI supports available to homeowners. In response, the SEC launched the Warmer Homes Project to help households access grants and retrofit opportunities.

 The survey also identified major barriers to uptake:

• Limited awareness of SEAI’s free energy upgrades for eligible homeowners
• Negative perceptions of the scheme such as “What’s the catch?”
• Concerns about long timelines for SEAI works
• Difficulties completing application forms

Results

Since embarking on the project, Wexford Town SEC received 100+ applications to SEAI’s Warmer Homes Scheme. 28 homes have been retrofitted to date. These homeowners are experiencing warmer, more comfortable homes and lower energy bills.Everyone in the Southend area eligible for a free energy upgrade have been approached and made aware of the grants available to them. 

The SEC received regional and national recognition, including:

• Featured in NESC publication “Energy Transition as an Opportunity to Eliminate Energy Poverty” (May 2025).
• Profiled at SEAI National Event (June 2025) and South East Agency Event (2024).
• Won the SEAI ‘Inspirational Sustainable Energy Community’ Award (November 2025).

Some of their key learnings from the project, include:

• The importance of background research through public events, surveys and meetings
• You need a team of motivated people to build connections
• Use a bottom-up approach through active local community groups.
• Strong collaboration between agencies (SEAI, WCC, SETU, WLD, HSE) is crucial.
• Appoint a trusted Energy Champion within the community.
• Target areas with identified need using POBAL Index and surveys.

Next steps

The SEC plans to continue promoting SEAI grants and retrofit opportunities within the community. The team would like to expand the Energy Champion model to other communities across the county in conjunction with the Enniscorthy SEC Home Energy Champion project. They are also passionate about sharing their learnings and best practices nationally to help other SECs replicate this success.