A SECONDARY school is cooking up a storm after its new solar panels were installed, thanks to Wokingham Borough Council.
The Bulmershe School, on Woodlands Avenue, Woodley, replaced its old versions with 131 updated ones.
The new panels, which are across the roof of the building above the kitchen, could generate up to 49kw per hour at maximum capacity.
“Projects like this are fantastic for Wokingham Borough and it’s residents,” Cllr Gregor Murray, executive member for resident services, communications and emissions, said.
“Not only does it help us tackle the climate emergency by lowering carbon emissions, it also help us reduce costs for powering our schools in the longer term as well as making them more self-sufficient.”
Since they were installed in the summer holidays, the array has already generated nearly 10,500 kWh of green electricity, the equivalent of powering an average family house for 350 days.
“The past months have shown us just how vulnerable our energy market is to external forces with increased global demand and disruption to the supply network causing prices to skyrocket.”Cllr Murray added supporting the properties help balance the risks and move them to low energy options like LED lighting.
The council is also installing a new battery system, meaning power generated by the panels can be stored and used by the school at the most required times.
And the original solar panels removed from the school will be reused for new, lower power demand projects in country parks.
