SOLAR PANEL PROBE ON 500 HOMES

‘Review’ comes amid call for inquiry

SOLAR panels on 500 Stoke-ontrent homes are to be checked for faults by a council repair team.

The probe comes as 40 out of 48 ‘spot checked’ homes were recently found to have faults, either directly or indirectly related to solar panels installed by energy firm Solarplicity – now the Community Energy Scheme (CES).

There are more than 5,000 properties with the panels in Stoke-on-trent City Council’s 18,000-strong housing portfolio.

The scheme has been running for almost three years and was launched to provide cheaper, greener energy to council tenants.

The planned review will see five teams of engineers visit council homes over five weeks, starting today.

The review comes amid calls for a full inquiry into the city’s contract with the Solarplicity company. The teams of two will be made up of one engineer from Unitas, the council’s housing repair firm, and one from the CES. Councillor Carl Edwards, left, cabinet member for housing, said any solar panel-related faults will be paid for and repaired by the CES. Any other electrical issues will be paid for and completed by Unitas.

He said checks were carried out at his request, adding: “It’s a matter of public interest. The city council wants to be assured that our tenants are getting the best deal they can get for their electricity and that everything is hunkydory.”

Unitas has completed work that was required on 40 properties where faults were found. Councillor Edwards said one was said to have been deemed “serious” by the inspection team.

Councillor Des Elliott claimed the Solarplicity deal had been “a shambles”, adding: “There needs to be a full and open inquiry. For over two years residents have been telling the council that all is not okay.

“Their mental health, finances and well-being are suffering.”

May Lewis, who has been campaigning for better customer service and billing on behalf of CES customers for over two years, echoed the concerns.

The Longton resident, aged

78, said: “It’s about time they did something. People are still suffering.”

Mum-of-four Sarah Mellor had a leaky roof after solar panels were installed at her council home in Longton.

The 40-year-old said: “They should have done all this years ago. “Nobody ever came to check mine were working or even turned on until I had to get

someone out because the roof was leaking. “Generally, I think the scheme could have been a good idea.”

In a statement, Councillor Edwards said: “We take very seriously the health and safety of all our tenants.

“These spot and routine checks are testament to that commitment.

“The responsibility for installing solar panels is the responsibility of organisations such as CES, who have provided assurance to us that all solar installations are tested for compliance and safety after the installation, and certificates of safety are therefore in place and held by CES and we have access to them as a landlord, as do Unitas when carrying out spot checks.

“We are ensuring our own systems of checking compliance are rigorous and have therefore agreed with CES to carry out joint inspections and work to rectify any faults immediately.”

If any tenant with solar panels has concerns they can call CES on 01782 980 040 or the council’s number 01782 234234.