The Chesterfield Royal Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is expected to save nearly £15m from solar energy use, data visualised by Polimapper shows.
As part of a new Great British Energy initiative, NHS trusts across the UK are receiving funding and incentives to invest in solar energy to help cut hospital energy bills and move towards sustainability. Lifetime savings for trusts are expected to be of at least £200m, and up to £260m.
Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust are set to receive funding across 11 sites, whilst three other trusts in England have seen 10 sites benefiting from the initiative.
Solar photovoltaic installations dropped sharply during the pandemic, but the number of installations recovered quickly by the second half of 2020 and gradually exceeded pre-pandemic levels.
Statistics released last Thursday by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero reveal that, in December 2024, 1.5m solar photovoltaic installations took place across the United Kingdom. This represents 5,313.2MW in installed capacity, an increase from 5,159 from September.
Polimapper has visualised this data to highlight cross country discrepancies, particularly between regions such as Wales and the South West and London.
The constituency with the highest number of installations in December was Peterborough, at 7,194, followed by Ceredigion Preseli, with 6,825. Conversely, this is lowest in Bethnal Green and Stepney (264), Kensington and Bayswater (288), and Poplar and Limehouse (290). Ceredigion Preseli (26.4MW) and North Cornwall (25.9MW) had the highest installed capacity registered in the UK.
About this map
The map below shows solar photovoltaic deployment statistics in December 2024 in the United Kingdom. This includes the number of installations and installed capacity by constituency.
To view statistics in your area double click on the map or click here to launch the full page version!
Alternatively, you can also access our ‘Solar panel installations in NHS trusts’ project here.
Geodata context
The increased number of solar installations across the country and the recent government push to cut bills in the public sector through solar deployment comes as research from Solar Energy UK revealed that 77% of the UK public supports solar development in their local area.
Chris Hewett, chief executive of Solar Energy UK: “Solar farms are popular, and public support is getting even stronger. As more solar energy is deployed across the country, and public awareness grows further, it is good to see that the nature benefits are becoming better known, but we need to keep improving community engagement so more people understand how locations are selected, and the multiple benefits the projects will bring,”
Charles Wood, deputy director of Energy UK: “It’s great news to see schools and hospitals benefitting first from this commitment to local and community energy projects. Cutting energy bills not only means more funding for these essential public services but also shows how the shift to clean energy can directly benefit local communities and give them a real stake in such initiatives.
Stew Horne, head of policy at Energy Saving Trust: “We now look forward to helping the UK government to shape the Local Power Plan to ensure it supports the community energy sector to grow. We know from our first hand experience delivering the Scottish Government’s Community and Renewable Energy Scheme and the Welsh Government Energy Service, the importance of end-to-end advice for communities to develop impactful projects and we hope to see the same focus in England.”
Minnie Moll, chief executive at Design Council: “Great British Energy’s first big initiative of putting solar panels in schools and NHS sites is simple and smart. This initiative isn’t just about energy, it’s about reimagining public spaces, thinking differently and being creative with solutions. It’s about designing in sustainability and designing out wasted opportunity.”