Wednesday 16 September 2026 | 10:00am–12:00pm | Online
How can rural communities make progress towards net zero in ways that are practical, affordable and responsive to local circumstances?
Join the Rural Services Network for a dedicated National Rural Conference session exploring how national priorities can be translated into effective local action and how the transition to net zero can support stronger, more resilient rural communities and economies.
Taking place online on Wednesday 16 September, the session will bring together expertise from national government, renewable energy, housing retrofit and local-authority service delivery. Attendees will hear about the challenges affecting rural projects, practical solutions already being implemented and the opportunities that decarbonisation can create for rural places.
What Will The Session Explore?
Rural communities have an important role to play in the transition to net zero, but they also face distinct challenges.
Older and harder-to-treat homes, limited energy infrastructure, higher levels of off-grid heating and dispersed populations can make decarbonisation more complex and costly. At the same time, rural areas offer significant opportunities for renewable energy, community-led projects, green skills and local economic growth.
The session will explore:
- National priorities for local net zero and what they mean for rural communities
- The role of renewable heat in creating resilient and sustainable rural places
- How environmental and economic benefits can be retained within the rural economy
- The practical barriers affecting the delivery of rural housing retrofit
- How housing providers and local authorities can deliver retrofit more effectively
- Innovative approaches to reducing the energy and carbon impact of rural street lighting
- How local knowledge and practical delivery experience can inform future policy
- The role of partnership working in achieving a fair and effective rural transition
The presentations will be followed by an open panel discussion and audience Q&A, providing an opportunity to put questions directly to the speakers and contribute to the wider conversation.
Meet The Speakers
Patrick Allcorn, Head of Local Net Zero, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero
Patrick Allcorn is Head of Local Net Zero at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.
Patrick will bring a national perspective to the session, considering local net-zero priorities and the opportunities they present for rural communities.
Presentation: “Net Zero in Rural Context”
Neil Harrison, Director, Reheat
Neil Harrison co-founded Reheat in 2011 and has been at the forefront of the UK’s renewable heat sector for 20 years.
He specialises in the development and deployment of biomass heating, with a particular interest in projects that deliver not only lower carbon emissions and energy bills but wider economic and environmental benefits for rural communities.
After completing an MSc in Rural Resource Management at Newcastle University, Neil worked in nature and science communication before managing a forestry industry extension programme in North East England. He has since worked with private-sector organisations, government bodies and international organisations.
Neil is a passionate advocate for community energy and the role that biomass can play in decarbonising the energy system.
Neil will share his expertise on the role of renewable energy in creating resilient and sustainable rural communities.
Presentation: “Bringing Rural Areas in from the Cold”
Kate Watson, Technical Lead, RISE
Kate Watson is Technical Lead at RISE, where she manages a team of sustainability and retrofit specialists providing end-to-end project guidance to housing providers and local authorities.
Kate has worked in the sector for more than 15 years and has direct experience of delivering retrofit at scale across social housing, local-authority low-income schemes, private rented homes and the able-to-pay market.
She will explore the particular challenges affecting rural retrofit and what is needed to support smoother, more effective delivery.
Presentation: Acknowledging Barriers to Smooth Rural Retrofit Delivery
Karl Rourke, Service Manager for Street Lighting, Traffic Signals and CCTV, East Riding of Yorkshire Council
Karl Rourke is responsible for East Riding of Yorkshire Council’s Street Lighting, Traffic Signals and CCTV service, overseeing a combined revenue, capital and energy budget of £6 million.
Since joining the council as a Street Lighting Engineer 16 years ago, Karl has overseen a £12 million column-replacement programme, £10 million of investment in energy reduction and the conversion of 17 metres of street lighting units.
Karl is also Project Manager for the council’s Live Labs 2: Decarbonising the Highway project, which is examining how street lighting and illuminated road-sign provision can be decarbonised and rationalised.
Presentation: Live Labs 2: Reframing Rural Lighting
Who Should Attend?
This session will be particularly valuable for:
- Local-authority climate, sustainability and net-zero teams
- Housing, property and retrofit teams
- Highways, street-lighting and infrastructure professionals
- Elected members with responsibility for climate, housing or rural communities
- Housing associations and other social-housing providers
- Community-energy groups and renewable-energy organisations
- Energy, environmental and economic-development professionals
- Voluntary and community organisations supporting local climate action
- Anyone interested in delivering a fair and practical rural transition to net zero
This is not an exhaustive list. We welcome colleagues from across RSN member organisations who have an interest in rural net zero, energy, retrofit, infrastructure or sustainable rural development.
This session is exclusively available to RSN members. Attendance is included at no additional cost with eligible membership packages, while a small fee applies to Rural Village Services Group and Rural Market Town Group members.
Please note that the session will not be recorded. To hear directly from our speakers, take part in the Q&A and contribute to the discussion, you will need to join us live.
Wednesday 16 September 2026
10:00am – 12:00pm
Online
With thanks to our conference supporters
The Rural Services Network would like to thank our National Rural Conference 2026 supporters for helping us deliver this important programme of discussion, learning and shared rural experience.
