Our Team

‘Working for OVESCO has been my passion for the last ten years and I believe community energy gets people involved in their own energy use’.

I have been employed by OVESCO since 2007. I managed the Lewes District Council micro-generation grant scheme for three years, which allowed OVESCO to fund an office in Lewes. Since then I have managed two Local Energy Assessment Funds, mentored 12 community energy groups to set up as new benefit societies and helped set up Community Energy South in 2014.

I am also a director of Meadow Blue Community Energy CBS, Merston Renewable Energy CIC, and a strong supporter of Community Energy England as well as the Transition Town movement.

‘What I love about Community Energy is it enables everyone to take an active role in tackling climate change.

I have worked for Ovesco since 2018.  Prior to that I have held a variety of roles in the UK renewable energy sector, working at political, strategic and commercial levels.  When not working with Ovesco and their sister organisation Community Energy South, I run systemic workshops that empower individuals and organisations to work through “stuck” and into empowerment.

 I enjoy walking our beautiful countryside, bicycle exploring  and canoeing down the Ouse.

I have worked in the heating renewables energy since 2009 and have had a passion for energy efficiency in housing since 2003. 

I have worked in the heating renewables industry since 2009 and have had a passion for energy efficiency in housing since 2003.

I started working for Ovesco in the summer of 2020 and bring my commercial skills from my years in the heating industry as well as past experience with Ernst & Young and PwC as an international tax accountant. I live locally in Lewes, love walking on the Downs with my dog Mabel and enjoy refurbing houses in my spare time.

‘I have worked all my life as a engineer and we have the skills to build a future powered by renewable energy alone’.

With a BSc in Electrical & Electronic Engineering, Nick has worked for over 30 years in the electronics and electrical engineering industry. As Chief Engineer and Head of Design/Development for Telcon Ltd he worked on the design and development of the company’s products, principally electrical current and energy sensors, many of which are used in the renewable energy industry around the world.

Nick has wide ranging technical skills in energy conservation and power generation and his own home is fitted with PV, solar thermal and a ground source heating plant. Nick has an MSC form the Centre for Technology in Wales.

‘OVESCO is working towards a happy low carbon future where we can balance locally owned renewable energy with demand and supply.’

I joined OVESCO having set up the Barcombe Energy Group back in 2011 and have worked alongside the team here to help share the OVESCO model to groups around the region. In 2012 I worked with Ovesco and other regional energy groups to set up Community Energy South a regional energy group that acts for the voice for the sector in the region, supports community energy groups to capacity build and develop new smart energy models.  I am also currently Regional Director and representative for Community Energy England.

Working with Ovesco is a real pleasure, mainly because they are such a pioneering community interest company but also because when I meet local shareholders and beneficiaries its so great to hear them speak proudly about Ovesco and its role in making Lewes District fit for the future.

‘I am strongly committed to OVESCO’s work with renewable energy and its community investors’.

With a background in policy-related social and educational research and evaluation of public services, I worked for 12 years as a senior manager at the Audit Commission, inspecting and evaluating the management and delivery of public services and the use of public money. I have also worked with schools and local authorities as a consultant, been the chair of governors of a Brighton primary school, and am involved in a number of local community organisations.

‘I have been working to combat Climate Change since 2006 and I believe communalities can make a real difference’.

I have been in Partnerships and as Business Development Manager with CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project) working with businesses, investors and universities; and supporting the community of Lewes as Director of the Lewes Pound CIC since 2009. With the help of the other OVESCO directors and my willingness to learn I am delighted to be part of the guidance and inspiration that is OVESCO – delivering carbon saving projects, advising others and developing new partnerships and initiatives for the benefit of Lewes District and beyond.

‘I built an eco home in 2005 in Lewes where I live with my wife and 2 daughters. I have been actively engaged in community projects and am passionate about renewable energy and the environment’.

Paul worked for many years as an investment fund manager before setting up his own property company which he still runs. In 1998, Paul joined 2 other entrepreneurs who had just set up the Ethical Property Co, which is now is one of the largest social businesses in the UK, owning and/or managing a total of 23 Centres across England, Scotland and Wales, and providing office, meeting, event and retail space to over 1000 organisations each year. He continues to be a non-executive director. Paul is also a non-executive director for both  Ethical Property Europe and The Social Justice and Human Rights Centre Company Limited.

Nick Owens is a retired management consultant.  After a degree in Economics he qualified as a Chartered Accountant, then worked in a variety of consultancy roles with C&L, Ernst & Young and PA Consulting, mainly in the health sector.  In 2010 he set up Owens Insight Ltd, to provide health IT cost-benefit and fund-raising assistance to NHS Trusts, becoming employed by the University College London Hospitals NHS Trust in 2017 as a project manager and programmer on their new clinical systems implementation. He retired from this in 2019 to do an MSc in Architecture & the Sustainable Environment at University of Kent. He is a shareholder in and the Treasurer of HKD Energy Limited, a community benefit society serving Hassocks, Hurstpierpoint, Keymer and Ditchling. He is also a Parish Councillor in Hassocks, chairing the Planning Committee. His keen interest is in enabling much greater energy efficiency, especially in housing. He and his wife Sally live in Hassocks and between them have 5 now adult children.

‘I am passionate about the environment and spent a number of years campaigning for Greenpeace and running a group of local activists in London. I have a Post Graduate Diploma in Renewable Energy in the Built Environment from the Centre for Alternative Technology in Wales. I am a director of Orchard Community Energy Ltd.’.

I am a member of the Chartered Institute of Taxation and started my training as a corporate tax adviser with Ernst & Young in 1988. I have over 25 years’ experience working for a number of multinational companies, gaining significant experience in dealing with internal and external stakeholders, corporate governance and compliance.

Mark recently came to the world of community energy after years working in recruitment and journalism. He enjoyed his previous careers, but nothing has inspired him in the same way community energy has.

Outside work, most of Mark’s time is taken up with his young family and environmental activism. In what little time remains, he enjoys writing novels and short stories, reading, cricket, cooking and eating good food with family and friends, and walking, particularly in mountains.