From folly to mainstream solar panels are no longer for the middle class good-lifer’s. They are now standard energy generation feature on many homes today. From June 2022 they are a required energy saving feature on every new home. Here’s some head line facts about the growth of homes with solar panels in the UK today:-
As solar becomes mainstream home technology the over 1.4 million homes now accounts for 15.8 GW solar capacity. This significantly contributes towards the Governments target of 40GW solar electricity by 2030. While 1.4 million homes sounds a lot, it is just 4.9% have the UK’s 28.4 million households. But, the trend is now upwards on a rapidly accelerating trajectory. Homeowners fitting solar panels to their existing homes is called retrofitting, this growth of solar panel installation is happening at an increasing rate. New regulations on new build homes (Part L regulations June 2022) mean all new homes will be required to be build with solar panels installed.
Solar Panel distribution is not even across the UK. The South and West lead the way in solar panel adoption in the K. But, adoption is not purely following the sun, cities like Glasgow and Sheffield have high solar panel installed systems. It does help that where the sunlight in the UK is strongest so is where solar panel adoption is at its highest. So, Anglesey, Devon and Dorset all lead the way with the highest number of households with solar installations at over 13%. Driving up the South West’s household penetration to 7.08%. But then Cambridgeshire and the Scottish Borders closely follow with over 12% and 10% respectively. Just proving that it is not just the amount of sun that drives solar panel installation!
Housing Associations and councils have also adopted solar panels on new homes. Coupled with solar panel installers working hard in developing their customer bases in specific geographic areas. Innovative ideas such as group purchase deals, get everyone on a street to all go solar together for example. Or focused direct marketing on specific areas have all driven localised and region increases in solar panels. Attitude shift is also driving the next wave of solar panel adoption.
Solar panels used to be a quirk for the ‘do-gooders’ in society,. The ‘eco-warriors’ but is now seen as a very acceptable and desirable household feature. A 2023 government survey on heat and energy shows that 66% of all respondents and 70% of people living in owner-occupied homes would likely consider installing solar panels in their homes in the next few years.
This is further supported by a report by Solar Energy UK about public attitudes towards renewable energy technology shows that solar energy is hugely popular, especially compared to other energy sources. Public support is consistently high, with polling results showing that 90% of the public supports solar panel energy. Even solar farms, the least visually appealing representation of solar energy is well supported. Support for these farms is strengthening over time among people living near them as they recognise their benefits.
One major shift in society is that homeowners believe that installing solar panels as the third most significant home improvement priority after fitting a new bathroom, kitchen, or windows.
Renewable Energy Institute shows that 2023 saw a record number of domestic green energy installations. The monthly average is over 17,000 households installing solar panels. This is set to increase as energy bills set to continue to increase, in October 2024 another +10% energy price rise has just been confirmed. With every new home now including mandatory solar and the advent of domestic battery storage now reducing energy dependence even further.
The final main driver for sailor growth is that the price of solar has fallen hugely since its first launch. Typically solar panel systems have fallen by around 80% since 2010. It is now far cheaper to install solar panels than a new kitchen or bathroom. With systems now lasting for over 25 years they are also seen as an asset to a house. IF you would like to know more about solar panels on your homes click this link here