A SCHOOL has installed solar panels to lower its carbon footprint and save thousands of pounds in electricity bills.

Earlier this year, Broadmayne First School was awarded a grant of £1,900 towards 12 new solar panels which were mounted on the school roof over the summer.

The grant from Low Carbon Dorset, funded by the European Union’s European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and run by Dorset Council, contributed 40 per cent of the overall costs of the project.

The panels will help with the running costs of the school's open-air community swimming pool, which unfortunately closed this year due to Covid-19. The pool is used both by the school children and by the general public over the summer holidays. During the winter, energy generated by the panels will also help the school reduce its carbon footprint.

The panels are expected to generate over 3KWh of electricity per annum saving the school almost £8,000 over the next 20 years.

Headteacher Helen Collings said “As a Green Flag Eco School we are really pleased to welcome this addition to our drive to make our school as eco friendly as possible. We are really grateful to the Friends at Broadmayne School for all the work they do to help us keep our wonderful swimming pool open for our children and the wider community, and the solar panels will help with this.”

Costs for panels were kept down with the help of local contractor Tincleton Solar Systems and Templegate Electrical Supplies.