Benefits are the societal good that projects achieve and the reason those projects are implemented. Benefits are measurable improvements resulting from the final result or outcome.

The benefits can be the hardest part of a project to measure. They are of particular interest to the people who have to decide to carry out the project. To measure them you can use collected data, statistics, or surveys.

Defining your benefits within a standard framework can help identify potential opportunities to create impact and change. A benefits framework can also provide a robust approach to testing whether a proposed benefit is realistic and if it is measurable.

We have provided a list of benefits that a local energy project could provide, which have been developed alongside the Ashden Co-Benefits Toolkit (Ashden 2021) and the case studies referenced in this project.

Benefits included in a project’s aims must have actions and measurements associated with them to ensure that the benefit is achievable and delivered by the project.

The benefits categories are:

• Health and well-being – Actions that create healthier buildings, spaces, services or environments.
• Financial – The financial benefits of local energy projects is to save money, make money, and cut costs. These actions are crucial for making these projects not just environmentally friendly but also financially sound.
• Equity and social – Actions focused on equity and social aspects within the context of the energy transition aim to create a fairer society and ensure that the shift towards sustainable energy is just and equitable.
• Resilience – Resilience in an energy system can be defined as its ability to reduce the impact of shocks and stresses.
• Net Zero – Actions that reduce carbon emissions in line with Net Zero targets.
• Economic opportunity and job creation – Actions that provide local jobs, training, and enterprise opportunities that increase the capacity and capability to deliver Net Zero and create growth in the local economy.