Meet The Team
Kayla Ente MBE
Founder & CEO
Kayla established BHESCo in 2013 and is the driving force behind the co-operative. Kayla is responsible for new business development and is the primary lead on the BHESCo Projects Team.
She is considered a thought-leader in the community energy sector and her insight has been sought by the BEIS Community Energy Contact Group and the All-Party Parliamentary Group on energy storage.
Kayla is a qualified accountant with an MBA in Environmental Management, who has previously worked with Greenpeace International, Nuon (a Dutch utility) and Ecofys (European pioneers in renewable energy).
Kayla was awarded an MBE in 2021 for her services to community energy
Garry Felgate
Chair, Non-Executive Director
Garry has a strong business and policy background in energy, environment and sustainability, built in corporate organisations (IBM, Landmark Graphics) and leading consultancies (KPMG, A.T.Kearney).
He was formally CEO of the Energy Retail Association representing the big six energy companies in the UK where he was instrumental in setting up the Warm Homes Programme.
Garry was a founder director of the Carbon Trust leading on the UK’s carbon reduction programmes for business creating the Action Energy and Carbon Management programmes.
He has been a non-executive director of the Energy Saving Trust, The Ombudsman Service Limited, The UK Public Health Association and the Fuel Poverty Advisory Group.
He is an alumnus of the University of Cambridge, HRH The Prince of Wales Business & The Environment Programme.
Nowadays he supports his passion of clean affordable energy through innovation creation, regulatory and policy advice both here and abroad and assisting not-for-profit organisations.
Diane Smith
Operations Director
Diane has been a finance professional for more than 25 years. After running treasury operations for The Economist Newspaper in London, she moved to the Netherlands to set up Nike’s European foreign exchange risk management programme and then to Belgium to lead operational support teams and IT project managers at BNY Mellon (a US investments company). She has been working in the renewable energy sector since 2014.
Mark Kenber
Non-Executive Director
Mark was formally CEO of Mongoose Energy – a company providing asset management, project development and finance services to the community energy sector. Prior to joining Mongoose, Mark had been with international climate change NGO The Climate Group for nearly 12 years, with the final five of these as CEO.
During his time with the Climate Group Mark oversaw the launch of the Verified Carbon Standard, We Mean Business coalition and RE100 campaign and was an expert advisor to former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair on the joint policy initiative Breaking the Climate Deadlock.
Mark’s other experience includes being Senior Policy Officer for the WWF’s International Climate Change Programme, Director of Planning and Policy at Fundacion Natura in Ecuador and climate advisor to the Ecuadorian government.
Rachel Espinosa
Food Waste to Energy Director
Rachel is an expert in waste management operations, strategic planning and development and has worked in the waste industry for 20 years.
She is a centre councillor for the London and South Counties Centre of the Chartered Institution of Waste Management and is currently engaged as a waste management specialist at the global sustainability consultancy Ricardo Energy and Environment. Rachel has been a Non-Executive Director of BHESCo since 2015.
Paul Beckett
Non-Executive Director
Paul is co-owner and co-founder of the multi-disciplinary environmental consultancy Phlorum, which he set up with a colleague in 2003.
Before then he provided environmental consultancy at WSP and RPS. As a consultant, he has completed environmental impact assessment work on a very broad range of projects, from housing developments to energy production, warehousing, sewage treatment, various industrial processes and transportation infrastructure schemes.
He has recently been the industrial supervisor for EU Regional Development Fund and UK Research Councils funded PhD studentships at Liverpool, Lancaster and Sussex Universities.
He is a past member of the Manchester City Council Climate Change Action Plan Steering Group.
BHESCo Staff Team
Simon Punyer
Technical Lead
Simon is a mechanical engineer who has spent much of his career with the global engineering consultancy Ricardo, based in Shoreham. Between 2002 and 2007 Simon was with Npower renewables developing small hydro power schemes, before volunteering in Nepal also to work with hydro power.
Richard Dow
Technical Consultant
Richard joined BHESCo following a postgraduate degree in Smart Energy in the Built Environment. After working previously as a civil engineer in the water sector, he has joined our project team to focus on energy assessment and improvements for commercial buildings. Richard is passionate about contributing to successful community energy projects.
Alex Williams
Project Developer
Alex completed her Masters degree at Imperial College London in Mechanical Engineering, with a dissertation on the role of Energy Storage Systems in local energy generation.
She then worked at the Energy Networks Association as part of their Open Networks programme, before joining the BHESCo Projects Team in 2024.
Tim Beecher
Retrofit Assessor
Tim joined BHESCo after qualifying as a Domestic Energy Assessor. He has an environmental science masters degree (MSc) in ecology conservation and biodiversity surveying. His background is in community-focused work, giving housing advice and benefit support. Tim is also qualified to deliver Energy Performance Certificates (EPC’s).
Rebekah Fleming
Energy Efficiency Advisor
Rebekah recently graduated from Sussex University where she studied International Development. Her research interest was in alternative economies with a focus in social and environmental justice. Rebekah is the team lead on BHESCo’s Carbon Neutral Communities programme and is working towards becoming an Domestic Energy Assessor.
Nici Rice
Domestic Energy Efficiency Advisor
Nici is an experienced energy assessor and joins our team to support our work tackling cold homes and fuel poverty. Her background is in sports development, using sport to bring about positive, social change. “I’m excited that in my role at BHESCo, I will bring some warmth and wellbeing to the community”.
Dan Curtis
Communications Officer
Dan joined BHESCo following a previous career working in financial services. Dan is responsible for BHESCo’s public facing communications, including website development, social media, public events, direct marketing and media enquiries. Dan is also BHESCo’s project lead on the Big Energy Saving Network, providing free energy saving support and advice to residents across the city.
Sofia O’Donovan
Accounts & Bookkeeping
Sofia is fluent in several major languages which have enabled work in different countries in Europe and South America. Sofia studied Internaional Relations at the University of Barcalona and Economics with Specialization in Sustainable Economics at the Universidad Catolica del Ecuador. Sofia recently completed her Xero Bookkeeping certification.