BroomGoing Green and Saving Council Tax
Energy bills hitting the roof, huge pressure on Council Tax – plus the small matter of doing our bit to Save the Planet! For all these reasons, parish councillors have agreed to fit solar panels on the Village Hall roof – at no cost to local Council Tax payers. That’s because we can use development funding (called CIL). It can only be used on local infrastructure – not on reducing Council Tax. However, if we invest to reduce energy costs, it will reduce the amount of financial support the Village Hall needs, which in turn will help to keep future Council Tax bills down.
How much will it cost?
£49k for installation of the solar panels and a large battery storage unit.
How will it be paid for?
Community Infrastructure Levy (or CIL). CIL is nothing to do with the parish rate. Local authorities and parish councils get CIL because there has been development in their areas. CIL is designed to improve local infrastructure. It can only be spent on one-off capital items and can’t be used to reduce the parish rate.
How much money will it save?
Because we’re getting a powerful battery, electricity that is generated in daylight hours can be stored and used at other times. Also, when our current energy contract expires in about a year’s time, we can go on to a different contract that allows us to sell surplus electricity to the national grid.
Currently, the Village Hall has to budget in excess of £10k for energy. Although many details still have to be sorted out, our plan is that the electricity saved plus the amount we can sell to the national grid will broadly meet our energy costs. The amount of subsidy that the Village Hall will probably need from the Parish Council next financial year is also around £10k. So, in the long term, we hope that the solar panels will enable the Village Hall to become much more self-sufficient.
What does the Village Hall do?
Alongside other local facilities, the Village Hall is a key way of bringing the local community together. Since lockdown, it has been increasingly used for community activities, such as Stay and Play, Coffee Mornings, Warm Hubs, etc and is also now hosting a youth club – all activities that support the community and particularly vulnerable residents who might otherwise be lonely, isolated and, at the moment, cold!
It’s also a facility for local residents and organisations to hire for a variety events. Broomfield residents get a discount – so make sure you consider us for your party or wedding! And come along to one of the community events mentioned above and get to know other people in your local community.
What else are you doing to make Broomfield greener?
Solar panels on the Village Hall are just the start! Read Section 12 of our draft Neighbourhood Plan and you’ll see we’re brimming with ideas to make Broomfield an even more ‘green and pleasant land’ – new safe cycle paths, new hedgerows and woodland, protecting important green spaces and much, much more. To access the draft Neighbourhood Plan, follow this link: https://www.broomfieldnp.org.uk .
Another idea we’re investigating is to install charging points in the Village Hall car park, for local people who want to go green but don’t have convenient charging points at home. Many such ideas attract significant government grants. Donna Hance, our Events and Funding Officer, is working hard to get as much funding for Broomfield as possible. If you’re interested to helping with these sorts of projects, please let us know.
If you have any other questions or comments, don’t hesitate to contact the Parish Council at: clerk@broomfield-pc.gov.uk or call in at the Parish Office. We’ll be glad to help.
