Fit for the future, David and Enitan tell the story…
We're excited to announce that our 32 solar panels are now resting upon the beautiful Welsh slate roof tiles and generating power! Good for the planet and also helpful in reducing our energy bills, as is the sheep’s wool which has been used to insulate the roof space. Martin blessed the solar panels last Friday with a poem written by Amelia.
We did anticipate that there would be a few surprises along the way and there were! In addition, the PCC also agreed as scaffolding costs are so high, that it made sense to commit to doing some repairs, which we had not budgeted for, whilst we had the scaffold in place.
We know that many of you have already given to the ‘Go Green’ campaign, but we also know that there are people who have offered to contribute to the ‘Fit for the Future’ campaign. If you would like to and are able to you, you can make your donation directly on Sundays using the card machine or the hat, or here via Stewardship. No gift is too little because together our gifts add up.
As ever, thank you for your support. The heat pump and the solar panels together help St Luke’s to reduce our carbon footprint and hopefully will inspire other churches and organisations to do likewise.
With best wishes,
Jacqui & Joy
A Version of Psalm 23 by Amelia Turncliffe
God is my Solar Panel,
I shall not be in the dark.
God energises me, leading me into hope.
I am full, my battery is powered up.
Even in the days of cloud,
I know the divine presence is there.
As each day the sun rises
- hidden sometimes but ever present - I grow not weary or afraid.
I know the power will return and the light will shine through.
And some background about the project…
Our 5 yearly building inspection identified that our south aisle roof was in need of replacement. We had experienced several leaks, damaging the inside of the church.
We are fortunate to receive grant funding from our local charity Cloudesley. They funded a full replacement of the roof including an upgrade of sheep’s wool insulation and a full roof of solar panels. While the scaffold was in place we repaired areas of crumbling stonework, rusted gutters and old lead flashings
Maintaining the legacy. We now have a new Welsh slate roof, new lead flashings and repaired and new gutters that will keep the building dry and maybe last another 164 years (the age of the church). We have repaired some stonework, but there is more to do! The quality of the work carried out by the contractor, Universal Stone, was excellent. We feel that we have done our old church justice, repairing and maintaining it to the high standard of workmanship that the Victorian builders applied in 1860.
Comfort and economy. The new sheep’s wool insulation and airtight roof construction will keep the church and its occupants warmer in the winter and reduce our heating bills and carbon footprint going forward.
Green energy. We have 32 solar panels with a peak output of 15kW which will meet about half of our historic electricity use, and reduce our bills by around £2-3,000 a year.