Keech Hospice is a well known charity in the area, supporting terminally ill children and adults and their families across the region. It’s also the beneficiary of a unique solar project, one of the largest in the town, and a model for community solar that is the first of its kind in the UK.
The project began when Eddie Doherty of Renewable Edtricity Systems was introduced to representatives from Keech at an event. They told him how rising energy prices affected their charity, and it set Doherty thinking about what he could do. “Not knowing what was ahead of us, we went back to them and said we’ll install something for free for you.”
This rapidly became a collaborative effort, as “it would have been an uphill struggle with square wheels if we had tried to do it on our own,” as Doherty puts it. What followed was “a lot of begging, many, many hours of designing, of liaising with Keech,” and slowly a team came together. Business connections led to a donation of 504 panels from Astronergy, while another major solar supplier, Clenergy, donated the bars and clips for mounting the panels.
Without the support of these national suppliers, “there would be no project at all”, says Doherty, but it would take a lot more teamwork to carry out the install. At the local level, support first began to come in from Irish construction companies in Luton, including Capital Sky who are currently working on the new Luton Town stadium. Companies offered support in kind, such as scaffolding or the use of a fork-lift hoist. Others lent staff time, sending teams to work on the electrics or the panel installation.
Some of these companies would normally be in competition with each other, but found themselves working side by side on the roof of the hospice. “We’ve got some of the UK’s biggest suppliers, wholesalers, and they’re all working together,” says Doherty. “It’s a unity between giants of the sector that would normally be – not at loggerheads exactly, but certainly in healthy competition. They’ve put that aside, and what better way to come together than for Keech?”
When the installation is complete by the end of November 2025, it will be an array of 504 solar panels. That will save Keech a significant amount of money, estimated to be worth 50 to 60 thousand pounds a year for the life of the panels. “Lower energy bills mean we can reinvest that saving directly into specialist compassionate care for children and adults with life-limiting conditions in our community,” say Keech.
- You can follow progress on the Keech Solar Legacy Project on Facebook.
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