NEW REVIEW The Quarterly Newsletter for the UK New and Renewable Energy Industry ISSUE 42 November 1999

IN BUSINESS

SOLAR CLUBS – AN EXPANDING NETWORK

Solar Clubs are community clubs designed to make it easier and cheaper for householders to install an active solar water-heating system. Here, we describe the origins of this enterprising concept and review its progress in the UK to date.

Solar Clubs operate by training householders to install pre-manufactured solar collectors themselves. This enables the cost of installing a system to be reduced. In addition, by joining a Solar Club, members can take advantage of discounts from manufacturers and suppliers that the club has negotiated. This provides further reductions in the investment required to take advantage of solar water heating.

Joining a Solar Club does not cost anything, although there is a charge for attending the relevant training course. A self-installation DIY solar system will cost in the range of £800 to £2000. The precise amount will, naturally, depend on the type of system selected, the type and size of solar panel employed, and the control and storage system required.

In the UK, a solar water-heating system will normally provide half of the domestic hot water a household uses over a 12-month period. The precise saving made possible by self-installation will therefore depend on how exactly a household heats its water, and how much hot water it uses.

Founding and Expanding a Solar Club Network

In 1997 the Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE), in partnership with Environ, was awarded a grant from the Environmental Action Fund to pilot two Solar Clubs over a two-year period. One of the clubs was located in Bristol, the other in Leicester. In the second year of the initiative, the Mark Leonard Trust and the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation provided additional funding. During the pilot period, a total of over 100 members installed solar water-heating systems in the Bristol and Leicester areas.

A key development occurred in 1998, when the BOC Foundation contributed extra funding to expand the project and to support the launch of ten new Solar Clubs around the UK. To this end, seminars were held in Bristol and Leicester in February 1999 to disseminate the findings of the pilot project, and to invite applications to set up clubs as part of the network. Applications were received from a variety of organisations, and all the new clubs were launched in the spring.

As part of the support provided by CSE and Environ to these new Solar Clubs, training was offered to the organiser and trainer in each one. Clubs also received a starter pack that consisted of manuals and profile-raising publicity material, such as leaflets, posters and T-shirts. A key point is that the network has a national identity which gives members added confidence that this is a tried, tested, supported and carefully monitored scheme. For example, CSE and Environ operate a helpline for club trainers and organisers that they can use if they need assistance with or advice on a local issue.

The Network's Current Status

As summarised in the table below, the UK's network of Solar Clubs presently consists of 13 organisations, ranging geographically from Cornwall to Ayr, and from Wales to Essex. The clubs listed all operate on a "not for profit" basis. This means that they do not take commission from sales of solar heating equipment to their members and that all savings made through discounts are passed on to the members of the clubs.

Each club also offers a choice of at least three types of solar panel from manufacturers, all of whom are members of the UK's Solar Trade Association. CSE and Environ are currently continuing to seek sponsorship for further expansion of the network, as well as for publicising and marketing the new network of Solar Clubs.

Area	Organisation	Contact	Telephone No.
Ayr	South Ayrshire Energy Agency	Alan McGonigle	01292 280 109
Bristol	Centre for Sustainable Energy	Mark Letcher	0117 929 9950
Dorset	Purbeck District Council Swanage Ahead	Tim Stokes Jon Cull	01929 556 561 01929 422 893
Essex	Uttlesford District Council	John Farnell	01799 510 538
Leicester	Environ	Huw Thomas	0116 222 0222
London	Southwark Energy Agency	Chris Dunham	020 7582 9191
Mendip	Mendip District Council	Kate Hall	01749 343 399
North Cornwall	North Cornwall District Council	Paul Johnson	01208 893 474
Shropshire	Marches Energy Agency	Andrea Hanne	01743 252 571
South Cornwall	Community Energy Plus	Ian Smith	01326 316 496
Stroud	Stroud Valleys Project	Karen Saunders	01453 753 358
Surrey	Centre for Environmental Initiatives	Melanie Weatherall	020 8770 6611
Wales	Ceredigion & Dyfi Solar Club	Andy Rowland & Helen Nelson	01654 705 018 01545 572 162

For information about the UK's national network of Solar Clubs, or on setting up a new Solar Club in the UK, contact: Mark Letcher, Centre for Sustainable Energy, Bristol, Tel: 0117 929 9950; or Huw Thomas, Environ, Leicester, Tel: 0116 222 0222.

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