When Solar Doesn't Make Sense for a Parish: 8 Honest Tests

Why this article exists

We turn down around 15% of parish enquiries that approach us. Sometimes the building genuinely won’t work. Sometimes the economics don’t make sense. Sometimes the parish circumstances are wrong. The honest answer in those cases is “no” — and we’d rather tell you that up front than sell you a project you’ll regret.

This article lists the eight tests we apply to every parish enquiry. If your parish fails three or more of them, solar probably isn’t right for now (though it may become right later).

Test 1: Annual electricity bill above £2,500

Below £2,500/year of electricity consumption (~11,000 kWh), the economic case becomes marginal even with grants. Sunday-only churches with no hall, small congregations, and minimal weekday use often fall into this category. The fixed costs of a solar installation (project management, faculty, install, inspection) outweigh the savings.

If your parish electricity bill is under £2,500, the right Year 1 project is usually LED lighting and tariff switch rather than solar PV. Revisit solar in 3-5 years if circumstances change.

Test 2: Hall on the same site (or feasible church-only economics)

For Sunday-only churches with no hall, self-consumption rates of 25-40% mean two-thirds of generation exports at 8-12p/kWh rather than offsetting retail at 22-28p/kWh. The economics often don’t work without combined church+hall metering.

For parishes without a hall and without a clear path to combined metering with vicarage/parish house, the honest answer may be to wait until that infrastructure exists. Some parishes find this is the right time to start the conversation about building a hall.

Test 3: South-facing usable roof area

You need at least 50 m² of unshaded south-facing roof area (or close enough) to support an economically viable system. Many medieval east-west-oriented parish churches have this on the chancel south slope, nave south slope, or vestry. Some don’t — particularly small narrow medieval churches with steep pitches and dormers/spires interrupting the south slope.

If our on-site survey concludes the available south-facing area is less than 50 m², we usually recommend not proceeding. North-facing slopes generate ~60% of south-facing yield; not enough to make the economics work.

Test 4: Listing status compatible with available roof slopes

For Grade I and Grade II* listed churches, the principal nave roof is essentially off-limits for solar in 2026. If the church has no chancel south slope, no usable outbuilding roof, and no hall, the heritage bar may exceed the available design space.

We’ve turned down a small number of Grade I parish projects on this basis. The right answer in those cases is typically: focus on parish hall solar elsewhere, or solar on the vicarage, or community solar through a shared site.

Test 5: PCC capacity to engage

Parish solar is a 12-18 month project requiring four substantive PCC meetings, hosting an on-site survey, and a named project sponsor (usually a churchwarden). If the PCC has no available volunteer time, no clear sponsor, and ongoing capacity problems with simpler matters, solar will struggle.

The right answer here is sometimes “later” — wait until a more capable PCC member is in place, or wait for a new incumbent vicar who can champion the work. Sometimes “never” — the parish has limited capacity and other priorities matter more.

Test 6: Diocesan/circuit support available

For CofE parishes, we typically need the Diocesan Net Zero Officer to be supportive. For Methodist parishes, the Circuit Property Convenor needs to back the project. For Catholic parishes, the diocesan property department and finance committee need to be engaged.

If your diocese/circuit/finance committee is actively unwilling to support the project (rare but does occur), proceeding is hard. The grant routes typically rely on diocesan endorsement; the faculty pathway relies on diocesan engagement.

Test 7: Project budget headroom

Even with full grant coverage, parishes typically face £4,000-£14,000 of net capex commitment. The PCC needs the headroom to commit this without compromising essential parish operations (clergy stipend, fabric maintenance, mission spend).

Parishes operating substantial deficits with no reserves cushion can struggle even with high-grant projects. The right answer here is sometimes to delay until reserves are rebuilt, or to scale the project smaller, or to focus on lower-capex interventions first (LED, tariff switch).

Test 8: Long-term parish viability

Parish solar is a 25-year asset. For parishes with declining congregations, ageing demographics, and uncertain long-term viability, the question becomes: will the parish still be using this building in 15-25 years? If the answer is uncertain, the financial case becomes uncertain too.

For some parishes the honest answer is: focus on the next 5 years (LED, draught-proofing, hall improvements) rather than committing to a 25-year asset that may outlive the parish. Diocesan amalgamation or building closure can render solar investment poorly placed.

What we do when a parish fails the tests

When our desk feasibility concludes solar isn’t right, we say so clearly and we recommend what is. Common alternatives:

• LED lighting retrofit only (lower capex, faster payback, simpler permitting)
• Pew heater controls + tariff switch (zero/low capex, fast payback)
• Heat pump retrofit on the hall (where the heat load is the parish’s principal carbon footprint)
• Combined parish energy strategy across 3-5 years (rather than solar as a single Year 1 project)
• Wait 1-3 years for parish circumstances to change

We do this because our reputation depends on long-term parish relationships, not single-project revenue. The parishes we turn down often come back 2-5 years later when circumstances have shifted and the project does make sense.

The right way to find out

A free desk feasibility takes 7 working days, costs nothing, and is genuinely no-obligation. We’ll be honest about the tests above. If we recommend not proceeding, you’ve lost nothing and gained a clear answer to take to the PCC.

Request a free feasibility — including honest assessment. See also our PCC handbook for the complete decision framework.