60 kWp Solar on a Midlands Hospice

Scenario

A 16-bed inpatient hospice in the Midlands operating a charity model with day-care and outpatient services alongside inpatient palliative care. Annual electricity bill £52,000 across hospice plus three charity shops. Capital for the install raised via a restricted-fund gift-aided donor appeal — £68,000 over 6 months. The hospice’s main building is Grade II listed; the install required Listed Building Consent.

This case study is an illustrative composite derived from published industry data (notably St Michael’s Hospice, March 2024) and our own engagement profile in similar settings. Specific identifying details are anonymised.

What the project delivered

• System size: 60.2 kWp (140 × 440W panels)
• Inverters: 1 × 50 kW + 1 × 10 kW Solis string inverters
• Listed Building Consent: Successful application for non-public-facing south slope, sympathetic flashing details to match Welsh slate roof
• Grid connection: G99 via local DNO, 12 weeks (extended slightly for capacity assessment)
• Commissioning date: March 2024

Results

Metric	Year 1
Generation	57,000 kWh
Self-consumption	64% (36,500 kWh)
Energy saving (import offset at 27p)	£9,855
SEG export income (20,500 kWh at 8p)	£1,640
LA grant top-up (carbon reduction premium)	£2,319
Total year-1 saving	£13,814
CO₂ avoided	12,800 kg
Simple payback	5 years (gross)
Donor cost recovery via saving	5 years

Charity funding model

The capex was raised through a named-donor restricted fund appeal launched in October 2023. The appeal materials emphasised three benefits:

• Direct cost saving funding two FTE-equivalent nursing salaries annually
• Visible sustainability commitment to bereaved families
• Charity Commission-compliant restricted-fund accounting

The appeal exceeded target by £8,000 (£68,000 raised on a £60,000 target). Surplus was ringfenced for first-year maintenance and a planned reception live-display upgrade.

Listed building consent

The hospice’s main building is Grade II listed, originally a Victorian country house with later additions. Listed Building Consent was granted for the install on the non-public-facing south slope only — the original front elevation (north-facing) was excluded to preserve heritage character. We worked with a heritage consultant to specify sympathetic flashing details that match the original Welsh slate roofing. The LBC application took 14 weeks from submission to consent.

Hospice-specific install protocol

The install team completed a hospice-specific induction covering family-facing protocols, bereavement awareness, and what to do if approached by a relative. Noisier operations (roof penetration, scaffolding lifts) were time-coordinated with the clinical lead, avoiding identified clinically sensitive periods. No complaints or concerns were raised by residents or families during the 14-day install programme.

Outcome

The install paid for itself in 5 years against the original donor appeal target. Subsequent fundraising appeals referenced the install in materials, and a follow-on capital appeal for heat pump installation (planned 2026) reached target in 4 months — half the time of the original solar appeal. Donors cited the visible impact of the previous install as confidence-building.

The hospice’s annual report featured the install prominently and included tonne-CO₂ saved as a board-level reported metric from year one onwards.