An NHS hospital has secured a bid for a solar energy project to reduce its electrical use and carbon footprint as part of its sustainable future.

East Surrey Hospital, part of Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust (SASH), applied for funding in 2024 and were one of over 300 bids for solar and battery installations. The Trust then secured £1,615,224 of Government funding for solar installations on its East Surrey Hospital site as part of the national Great British Energy Local Power Plan.

The new solar farm will be a rooftop installation, with installation plans for 2827 new rooftop panels already well under away. The goal is to have the solar panels fully operational by spring 2026.

It is predicted that 99% of energy will be utilised by the hospital infrastructure and that the new farm will offset a total of 13% of the hospital’s total electrical energy consumption by solar power, eliminating 327 tonnes of CO₂, which is equivalent to 15,036 trees planted based on a 20-year lifespan.

It is estimated that the Trust will save more than £6.5m over 25 years based on initial calculations – reducing carbon emissions by 454 tonnes a year.

Patrick Blanche, Director of Estates and Facilities said: “This project represents another important step in our commitment towards the NHS’s pledge to be Net Zero by 2040 and will serve as a physical reference point for all future projects that are undertaken within our estate. The solar farm is just one of the engineering solutions that the team are reviewing and new plans will ensure alignment with sustainability strategies for the future”.

 

Last year, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) announced the Great British Energy Local Power Plan. As part of this announcement, £100m funding towards solar projects across the NHS was revealed, with SASH receiving part of the funding. The scheme is jointly run by DESNZ, the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC), Great British Energy (GBE), and NHS England.