Written statement on Great British Energy Solar on schools and hospitals - March 24

Minister for Energy (Michael Shanks): Hundreds of schools, NHS trusts and communities across the UK will benefit from new rooftop solar power and renewable schemes to save money on their energy bills, thanks to a total £200 million investment partnership between Great British Energy and the UK government, including the Department for Education and Department for Health and Social Care.

In another step forward for the government's Plan for Change, the Energy Secretary has today (Friday 21 March) announced the first major project for Great British Energy— a company owned by the British people, for the British people. It will immediately begin working with schools, the NHS, and devolved governments to install rooftop solar panels, build local clean power, and bring down energy bills.

In England around £80 million in funding will support around 200 schools. This could lead to lifetime savings of up to £140 million. Estimates suggest that on average, a typical school could save over £25 000 per year.

Additionally, £100 million will be allocated to nearly 200 NHS sites in England. This covers a third of NHS trusts. The NHS is the single biggest public sector energy user, with an estimated annual energy bill of £1.4 billion. This has more than doubled since 2019. Great British Energy's investment could save the NHS up to £260 million per year, up to £45 000 per hospital.

The first panels are expected to be installed by the end of summer 2025. This will save schools and hospitals money for the next academic year. There is also the potential to sell leftover energy back to the grid.

Schools and hospitals have been hit with rocketing energy bills in recent years, costing taxpayers millions of pounds, and eating into school budgets. This has been driven by the UK's dependency on global fossil fuel markets. Great British Energy's first investment could see millions invested back into frontline services, targeting deprived areas, with lifetime savings for schools and the NHS of up to £400 million over around 30 years.

A further £9.3 million will power schemes in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. These projects can be a mixture of installations on public sector buildings, new community or local renewables projects, and other complementary technologies such as battery storage solutions. This funding has come from the budget allocated to GBE Local delivery in the 25/26 spending review, which has been apportioned between all four nations by population share. England has supplemented with this with funding from existing budgets including health and education. The Devolved Governments may similarly choose to use this new funding alongside existing budgets to deliver ambitious new projects or expand existing schemes.

In addition, local authorities and community energy groups will also be supported by nearly £12 million to help build local clean energy projects - from community-led onshore wind, to solar on rooftops and hydropower in rivers – that can help drive growth.

The Great British Energy Community Energy Fund will provide £5 million in grant funding to support community energy groups to develop their own clean power supply projects. These could generate profits which could then be reinvested into community projects or take money off people's bills.

The UK Government will continue to fund the Local Net Zero Hubs in England, with a total of £6.8 million for existing Hubs. These offer a free to use service for local authorities to access the expertise and resource to get clean energy projects up and running.

Great British Energy is also launching partnerships with strategic mayoral authorities. The metro mayors can apply for a share of £10 million to deliver clean power projects in every region of England.

We have been clear from the start that expanding support for local and community power is a core ambition for Great British Energy. This announcement demonstrates an immense commitment by Great British Energy and the UK Government to support local and community energy now and in the future. These schemes will deliver clean, secure, homegrown power for our core public services and local communities.