The Community Heating Project

The Community Heating Project CIC is brought to you by RGM Heating Ltd and in partnership with The Cottage Family Centre.

RGM Heating Ltd is a local, small but growing business that was set up by three childhood friends, we are Fife and Which? Trusted Traders. The business was founded and is run with our customers and the community at the heart of everything we do, all three of the owners are all born and bred locally in Fife and are always looking at ways to give back. This has been clear to see from the moment we started the business back in 2020 by donating money from our first ever job. With every boiler install, we donated £25 to either Fife Zoo, Fight Against Cancer Edinburgh, or The Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity, we let the customer decide. We changed this after 12 months and currently plant a tree in the Scottish Highlands for every boiler installed.

After approaching local charities such as The Cottage Family Centre and the Cosy Kingdom about our idea of creating this initiative, we were met with encouragement and enthusiasm to help get the project off the ground. Since these meetings, people and families have been getting referred to us for help by the Cosy Kingdom and we are now also part of The Cottage Family Centres Big Hoose Fife Project which will require us to install washing machines and gas cookers for them free of charge. Graeme Robertson who is RGM’s Director also appeared on the BBC evening news on the media launch day for this.

After helping a local homeless charity ensure their properties were gas safe for incoming tenants and being contacted by the Cosy Kingdom to help a gentleman get his heating working efficiently, we wanted to do more. We have since helped three other vulnerable families with their heating issues who were also referred to us by the Cosy Kingdom. However, as a small business and with operational costs at an all-time high, there is only so much we can do on our own. We already have people on a waiting list for help as their jobs are too big for us to fund ourselves.

The Community Heating Project is a fund where 100% of the money raised, goes towards helping local, vulnerable people with their heating and hot water. That could be fixing their broken boiler, replacing condemned boilers, or even ensuring that their heating is working as efficiently as possible which will result in reducing their carbon footprint and keeping their heating bills down. We will also help with the supply and installation of vital household items such as gas cookers, washing machines, and plumbing essentials including showers, toilets, and sinks.

All labour will be charged out by RGM at an agreed, transparent rate with no profit or markup added to this or any required materials. The fund will be through a Community Interest Company called The Community Heating Project C.I.C which has been set up and will be run by Graeme Robertson. Referrals will come through to RGM directly or from The Cottage Family Centre and we hope to get more charities on board to help with this.

Our aim is to help everyone in Fife who needs our help and to ensure nobody must choose between feeding their families or heating their homes. We feel that right now with the cost-of-living crisis and energy bills at frightening levels, now is the time to act. This year with further energy bill increases expected, this winter is going to be one of the toughest in living memory and we want to have The Community Heating Project in full swing to help as many people and families as possible. Although we are only starting off with Fife, once everything is up and running, there is no reason why we can’t branch out and help other areas of Scotland that need our help.

Any help that we can get is greatly appreciated, from publicity to fundraising or donations, everything is greatly appreciated. Thank you for reading this and for your support.

Nobody should have to choose between heating or eating.

We can’t thank you enough for your generosity.