GB Energy investing £200m in solar panels on schools and hospitals to cut bills

The first major project for publicly owned Great British Energy will fund solar panels on the roofs of hundreds of schools and hospitals, the Government said.

A £200 million investment from the clean energy company’s Government-funded budget will put rooftop solar on schools and NHS sites in efforts to save hundreds of millions of pounds on energy bills and free up cash to reinvest in frontline services.

The investment also includes funding for councils and community groups to build local clean power projects, such as community-owned onshore wind, rooftop solar and hydropower in rivers.

Hospitals and schools have faced soaring bills in the face of the energy crisis, driven by volatile fossil fuel prices, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) said.

The NHS is the single biggest public sector energy user with an estimated annual bill of £1.4 billion – a cost that has more than doubled since 2019.

In England, around £80 million will support 200 schools to install solar panels, while £100 million will go to 200 NHS sites, cutting bills and providing the potential to sell excess power back to the grid, officials said, with estimated lifetime savings of up to £400 million over 30 years.

In addition Scotland will get £4.85 million, Wales £2.88 million and Northern Ireland £1.62 million for power projects including community energy and rooftop solar for public buildings.

And there will be nearly £12 million to fund local authorities and community energy groups to build local clean power projects that can help drive growth, which could generate profits that could be reinvested into communities or cut people’s bills, the department said.

The first panels are expected to be on the roofs of hospitals and schools by summer 2025, and the DESNZ said a typical school could save £25,000 a year, while the average NHS site could see savings on bills of £45,000 if they had solar panels installed alongside technology such as batteries.

Funding will target areas most in need, with selected schools primarily clustered in deprived areas in the North East, West Midlands and North West, as well as at least 10 schools in each region.

Each cluster will include a further education college, which will work with the solar panel contractors to promote careers in renewables, the Government said.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said: “Right now, money that should be spent on your children’s education or your family’s healthcare is instead being wasted on sky-high energy bills.

“Great British Energy’s first major project will be to help our vital public institutions save hundreds of millions on bills to reinvest on the front line.”

He added: “Parents at the school gate and patients in hospitals will experience the difference Great British Energy can make.

“This is our clean energy superpower mission in action, with lower bills and energy security for our country.”

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said the installation of solar would not just help schools financially, but also promote careers in renewables, while health minister Karin Smyth said bill savings would be diverted to where “it matters most for patients and staff” – frontline services.

Great British Energy chairman Juergen Maier said: “By partnering with the public sector as we scale up the company, this will help us make an immediate impact as we work to roll out clean, homegrown energy projects, crowd in investment and create job opportunities across the country.

“We will work closely with communities to learn from the scheme so we can scale up energy projects across the country.”

Published: 21/03/2025 by Radio NewsHub