Almost �100,000 is to be made available to encourage more community groups and families around Norwich to go green and find ways to use renewable energy.

The money will be offered for projects in Broadland w hich aim to use technology such as solar panels and air source heat pumps to cut carbon emmissions and improve energy efficiency.

Broadland District Council was allocated just under �290,000 by the government in 2008 to provide grants to environmentally friendly schemes.

The Broadland Community Renewables scheme had what officers called a 'tenatative' start, but turned out to be very popular, with seven community groups awarded funding to go green.

The projects which got money were:

Sprowston Parish Council: just under �15,000, using solar panels to provide hot water to its offices and pavilion at Recreation Ground Road.

Spixworth Infant School: �8,500 for solar hot water.

Wroxham Football Club: about �12,000 to provide hot water in its changing rooms.

Horsford Church Rooms: just under �7,000 on an air source heat pump to warm the hall, rather than electric heaters.

Reepham Primary School: �20,000 for photovoltaic panels.

Thorpe St Andrew Town Council: �14,000 towards an air source heat pump to replace electric storage heaters in the Fitzmaurice Pavilion.

At a meeting of Broadland's cabinet yesterday, it emerged that �92,000 was available because many of the projects had come in under budget.

Members agreed to recommend that the council extend the scheme.

John Fisher, cabinet member for environmental excellence, said: 'This has been an extremely popular scheme. It's an excellent scheme and I'm pleased we've got this extra money available for it.'

The meeting also heard how more than 160 homes have taken part in the Rackheath 'retro-fitting' project, where houses have had solar water or photovoltaic systems installed.

And two feasiblity studies are under way exploring whether PV systems can be installed at Broadland's Thorpe Lodge headquarters in Yarmouth Road and at the depot in Frettingham.

But officers said: 'It is suggested that still more needs to be done to try to influence publiuc opinion towards renewable energy installations as a means of cutting carbon emissions.'

Have you come up with an unusual way to go green? Write to Evening News Letters, Prospect House, Rouen Road, Norwich NR1 1RE or email eveningnewsletters@archant.co.uk