The installation

This project came about as a result of our solar installation at St Andrew’s Church in Hove – the same project manager worked on both installations.

Pattern Church in Swindon is an interesting historical building. The church used to be a train form factory, which is where parts for trains and railways were cast.

The panels were to be installed on the trapezoid roof that covered what used to be a water tank, taking up an entire storey of the building. If a fire ever broke out, all the workers in the building would gather in the stairwells and release the water tank, which would flood the building and put the fire out.

The church now has significant energy bills, due to high electricity usage, heat pumps and immersion heaters. The initial plans for the solar installation were fairly simple, so we redesigned the system to have a bigger impact on the high bills.

Local councillor Emma Bushell (deputy leader of Swindon Borough Council) told the Swindon Advertiser, “Adding rooftop solar panels proves that traditional buildings can be sensitively upgraded to meet modern sustainability standards without compromising their character or heritage.”