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SOLAR PANELS ON THE VC HALL
BRING ME SUNSHINE ….. (with apologies to Morcambe & Wise)
We had a huge roof facing almost due south – Norman, our Treasurer, said it was an opportunity not be missed!
Hopefully, most of you will have noticed that we now have PV Solar Panels on the roof of the VC Hall. Local contractor, Apollo Generation of Grantham (a Division of Kirk & Crane), has installed 40 high quality PV Solar Panels (190w per panel) for us, giving a total system size of 7.6kWp. The work was done within a week, with little impact to users of the hall. We are the first village hall in Leicestershire to have PV Solar Panels!
The aim of the Hall Management Committee has always been to keep the cost of hiring the village hall to a minimal level. Within a year of building the new hall in 2003, revenue had covered costs, and since then, with a few exceptions, hire charges have remained constant.
However, Hall finances are being affected by rising costs. Fuel bills, particularly in the winter of 2010, were extremely high, and without some action on the part of the Management Committee, it was felt hire charges would need to increase.
Installation of the PV Solar Panels will reduce the Hall’s electricity bills by approximately £355 a year and will give a regular income of approximately £2500 a year, guaranteed for 25 years, through the feed in tariff system – some sustainability for the future for the VC Hall, and if our calculations are right, a saving 3.5tons of CO2 a year!
Our thanks go to:
• Kevin Butcher of Leicestershire & Rutland Rural Community Council for his support
• Leicestershire County Council’s Shire Grants for Village Halls scheme for funding 17% of the total cost
• The Big Lottery Fund’s Awards for All for funding £6000
• Matt Swindells of Apollo Generation for his professionalism and expertise.