Since our community solar farm was commissioned in 2016, we have generated £150,000 for local community projects, which have been supported through the SACREC charity.
STEPS – Subsidised Taxis for Eligible Parishioners Service
The STEPS subsidised taxi service has been run for 2 years. In that time £3,000 of solar funds have been deployed on subsidised journeys, providing taxis for shopping, hospital visits and emergencies. The service has been accessed by elderly Parishioners and has provided a valuable link to the wider community at a particularly isolated time.
Sheriffhales Community Orchard
£4,000 of solar funds have been allocated to fund tree planting and equipment for a new community orchard on parish council land.
Village Hall Extension
At total of £40,000 of solar funds has been apaid to support the extension of Sheriffhales village hall, to assist in the social and school gatherings that take place there.
Parish Magazine
Solar funds of £500/year (starting in 2019) have been allocated to support the printing costs of the parish magazine. Steps are being taken to move some of this cost towards an electronic version of the magazine.
COVID Crisis
Over £14,000 of solar funds were allocated to supporting the community’s response to the COVID crisis, including funding the school to support social distancing and additional cleaning costs and funding to set up the telephone support network to offer advice and help to those in the Parish needing it.
Sheriffhales And SaCREC Shop (SASS)
Over £7,000 of solar funds were used to support the distribution of food and essential supplies to those in need during the 2020 lock down. A Cabin was hired, local farmers and food suppliers were mobilised and food parcels were made up and taken to the those in need. Plans are now being developed for a permanent Community Shop by the Young people involved.
LED Lights for all dwellings in Sheriffhales
£5,000 of solar funds have been deployed to provide LED bulbs to every household in the Parish, providing long-term energy bill and carbon reductions.
Lighting to the exterior of the Village Hall
£2,400 of solar funds paid for the addition of automatic lights to the steps accessing the Village Hall. As Sheriffhales has little street lighting due to its rural setting, access to the Village Hall steps during the hours of darkness was potentially dangerous. Installation of the motion sensor driven LED lighting to the steps has improved the safety of those accessing the Hall from this entrance.
Home learning
£3,000 of solar funds helped upgrade the primary school’s software licenses and train staff to aid the transition to online learning during the COVID crisis.
Church Electrics, Lighting and Heating
Over £4,000 of solar funds have been deployed to upgrade the Church’s electrics to current standards and improve the heating and lighting.
New lighting for the school drive
£2,500 was provided to cover the costs of installing LED street lighting to illuminate the school drive.
