Any school, college, nursery, university or other educational establishment can benefit from the Feed-in-Tariff (FiT).

However many people are put off by the complexity of the scheme and feel unsure about whether they want to invest or take advantage of free schemes. The following offers a brief outline which should set minds at rest.

If a system is self-funded, The FiT offers a payment for all of the electricity you use that has been generated by Solar PV panels, wind turbines and other renewable energy sources. Any electricity not used is sold back to the national grid where an additional payment is made. This amount is on top of any savings which are made in electricity bills where you are not importing energy from the grid.

Where systems are installed free of charge, the investor pays for the installation and upkeep of the panels but they are paid the government incentive (FiT), and the school benefits from greatly reduced electricity bills.

The government is currently reviewing the rates of the FiT and it seems likely that levels will decrease for larger installations.