Free solar energy for over 600 Nottingham homes

Low-income homeowners and private renters in Nottingham can apply to the city council to have solar panels fitted to their properties free of charge, in a bid to reduce energy bills and reduce carbon emissions.

Nottingham City Council has secured £4,367,540 from the government’s Green Homes Grant to fit solar panels to around 655 properties in the city. The council has used government funding to install solar panels on over 4,000 social housing properties since 2012. The rollout, due to start next month, comes as energy prices are rising and concerns increase about the need for greener ways to heat and power homes.

Installing solar panels is expected to save around £240 a year in electricity costs per household and would equate to a carbon saving of 440 tonnes over 655 properties.

Sally Longford, deputy leader at the council, said: “We have many low-income households in Nottingham who are facing a combination of factors which place a further squeeze on their over-stretched budgets. Many also live in homes with a poor energy performance and so this scheme is timely and will help to reduce energy bills while providing peace of mind about the green source of their energy. It’s another step on our just transition towards carbon neutrality while improving the lives of our residents.”