Ancient church sees the light by embracing solar energy
A THIRTEENTH-CENTURY church in West Sussex is to install solar panels as part of plans to fix its leaky roof.
Work is now under way at the Grade II*-listed St Mary’s in Funtington, near Chichester, to replace centuries-old roof tiles, some of which will have their place taken by photovoltaic cells.
The church roof has been in a perilous state for more than a decade, with St Mary’s twice missing out on government grants to fix rusting nails, rotting roof timbers and areas of infestation.
The parochial church council (PCC) had to sell one of its properties to fund the work.
The decision to include solar panels was made in part to help meet the Church of England’s 2030 net-zero goal, but also to reduce the number of new tiles needed.
The panels will sit in a valley between the roofs of the main and north aisles, meaning they will not be visible from most views of the church. The most advantageous spots for the panels were rejected because of their visual impact.
Electricity from the array will power new, ultra-efficient LED lighting in the church and support the heating system. Any excess will be sold to the grid.
The Rev Father Andrew Birks, the vicar, climbed on to the roof to bless the new tiles as they were being fitted last week. The work required listed building consent, as well as approval from Natural England because of the presence of endangered bats.
“Increasing the sustainability of our unique and valuable historic church whilst reducing its future running cost is a major consideration and the PCC are very excited to see our church becoming a local flagship of this ethos,” said Fr Birks. “To date, the work has progressed most satisfactorily around the continuing functioning of the church, including two wedding services.
“This balance of conservation and evolution is something that the Church of England is very aware of in setting the challenge for churches to incorporate sustainable technologies.”