17 kW Solar on Welsh Llandaff Diocese Parish Church

The parish

A Grade II listed Welsh parish church in the Cardiff suburbs, on the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff estate. The church serves an active suburban congregation (90-130 Sunday worshippers across two services), plus an attached parish hall used by uniformed organisations (Brownies, Cubs, Scouts), a weekly Welsh-language playgroup (‘Ti a Fi’), and the local Foodbank Cymru distribution. Combined annual electricity bill £6,800.

The Church in Wales has committed to net zero by 2030 across all six Welsh dioceses — a commitment made in 2021 alongside the Methodist Conference. The Diocese of Llandaff has been active in supporting parish solar through the Church in Wales Net Zero Carbon Fund. The parish PCC (‘Vestry’ in Welsh CinW terminology) had been considering solar since 2023.

Welsh constitutional context

The Church in Wales was disestablished in 1920 and operates as a separate province from the Church of England. The faculty system in Wales operates under the Constitution of the Church in Wales rather than the English Care of Churches Measure 2018. Each of the six Welsh dioceses (Llandaff, Monmouth, St Davids, Swansea & Brecon, St Asaph, Bangor) has its own Diocesan Advisory Committee (DAC) and Diocesan Chancellor.

The substantive process is broadly similar to the English CofE — Statement of Significance, Statement of Needs, DAC consultation, public notice, Chancellor’s grant — but the legal framework is Welsh. UK-wide funding (Buildings for Mission is CofE-only, so not available; Listed Places of Worship VAT scheme is UK-wide and applies) combines with Welsh-specific routes (Church in Wales Net Zero Carbon Fund, Welsh Government Net Zero programme).

The scoping conversation

Initial enquiry came via the Vestry secretary in February 2025. Concerns at first conversation:

• Welsh CinW faculty system — concern about complexity for a smaller diocese
• Funding mix — uncertainty about which UK-wide grants apply to Welsh parishes
• Welsh-medium parish — preference for bilingual project documentation
• Active weekday hall programme — strong self-consumption potential
• Local Foodbank Cymru hub — strong community-benefit narrative for funding

Initial desk feasibility (7 working days, free) confirmed:

• 17 kW system on combined church chancel (3 panels) + hall main roof (28 panels)
• Capex £20,500 turnkey
• Welsh CinW faculty process: we have experience with Llandaff DAC
• Funding mix identified: Church in Wales Net Zero Carbon Fund, LPW VAT, Allchurches Trust, possible Cardiff Council climate emergency support
• Bilingual delivery: all parish-facing documentation provided in Welsh and English

The faculty pathway

Vestry voted to proceed in March 2025. On-site survey conducted April 2025 with structural engineer, electrical engineer, and heritage specialist (Welsh-speaking, sourced via our EASA partner network).

The Welsh faculty application package prepared April-May 2025:

• Statement of Significance (Datganiad o Arwyddocâd, 900 words drawing on the listing description and our heritage analysis — provided in English with Welsh translation for parish records)
• Statement of Needs (Datganiad o Anghenion, 800 words emphasising the foodbank ministry and Welsh-language community engagement)
• Detailed drawings
• Conservation impact assessment
• Diocesan architect (mimryniwr esgobaethol) engaged at survey stage

Llandaff DAC consultation June 2025 — recommended with conditions (black-on-black panels on the chancel, standard panels on the unlisted hall). Public notice July 2025 — no objections. Faculty granted by the Chancellor of the Diocese of Llandaff on 14 August 2025. Total Welsh faculty timeline: 12 weeks from Vestry resolution. Comparable speed to English CofE diocesan processes.

The grant funding

Grant	Decision	Award
Church in Wales Net Zero Carbon Fund	June 2025	£10,000
Listed Places of Worship VAT scheme	March 2026 (post-invoice)	£2,800
Allchurches Trust	August 2025	£2,000
Cardiff Council Climate Emergency Fund	September 2025	£1,500
Parish reserves + community fundraising	—	£4,200
Total	—	£20,500

Net cost to parish: £0. Community fundraising (one Welsh-language harvest service appeal plus an autumn coffee morning) raised £4,200 against an initial £3,000 estimate.

The install

Install scheduled for October 2025. Total install time: 8 working days. Crew of three engineers plus a Welsh-speaking site supervisor for parish communications.

System specification:

• 31 panels (3 on chancel south slope, 28 on hall main roof)
• 15 kW Fronius Symo string inverter in church boiler room
• Black-on-black REC panels on chancel; JA Solar panels on hall
• Non-penetrative clamp fixings on slate
• 10 kWh BYD battery in plant room
• Welsh-language commissioning documentation (a first for our company — now standard practice for Welsh installations)

DNO connection: G99 three-phase (Cardiff Western Power Distribution territory). Approved in 8 weeks. Final commissioning 5 November 2025.

Performance results (full year)

Commissioned 5 November 2025. Performance through 31 May 2026 (~7 months):

• Cumulative generation: 9,800 kWh (vs 9,600 kWh modelled — 2% above)
• Self-consumption: 73% (foodbank Tuesday-Friday + uniformed organisations Mon/Wed/Thu evenings + Welsh playgroup Friday mornings = high weekday baseload)
• Cumulative cost avoidance and SEG income: £2,250
• Trajectory for first full year: £3,800-£4,000 — above the £3,400 modelled

The combination of foodbank distribution, three uniformed organisations evening meetings, and the weekly Welsh-language playgroup creates a remarkably consistent weekday electrical demand that the solar system serves directly. The 10 kWh battery captures Saturday-Sunday surplus for Monday morning church-office and foodbank use.

Welsh-language community engagement

The project sparked unexpectedly strong Welsh-language community engagement. The parish magazine ran a 4-page bilingual feature (English and Welsh), the local Welsh-language radio station (Radio Cymru) interviewed the vicar about the parish’s environmental commitment, and the project was featured in the Llandaff diocesan magazine ‘Y Tabernacl’. Welsh-language interest in church environmental work appears to be substantially under-served by English-only installer marketing.

Llandaff diocesan context

This was our first delivered project in the Diocese of Llandaff. The diocesan environment officer subsequently asked us to brief three other Welsh parishes considering similar projects — two in Llandaff diocese, one in the adjacent Diocese of Monmouth. Welsh-language project capability appears to be a meaningful differentiator within the Welsh CinW network.

What we learned

• Welsh CinW faculty process is comparable in timing to English CofE (12 weeks here)
• Bilingual project documentation matters to Welsh-medium parishes
• Welsh-language community engagement is a substantial untapped channel for parish solar storytelling
• Church in Wales Net Zero Carbon Fund awards are competitive (success rate appears higher than CofE Buildings for Mission)
• Cardiff Council Climate Emergency Fund accepts community-organisation applications including parish solar
• Foodbank Cymru and uniformed-organisations integration produces strong self-consumption

Could we deliver a similar project for your Welsh parish?

If your parish is in Wales (any of the six Church in Wales dioceses, plus Welsh Catholic, Methodist Cymru, or independent Welsh chapels), we’d be happy to provide a free bilingual feasibility. Request your free feasibility through our quote page. See also our Wales page and Cardiff location page for more detail.