Location: Leverburgh, South Harris.
Technology: Air source heat pump, solar water heaters, addition insulation
CARES funding: £103,956 Capital grant
Date installed/operational: May 2023
Background
In October 2015, the Leverhulme Community Hub Steering Group was formed after a public meeting was called to explore how to use the “Old block” in Leverhulme Memorial School. Comhairle Nan Eilean Siar agreed to sell the building, valued at £60,000 for £6,500, and provided a funding package for sensitive renovations to ensure the community hub was fit for future use.
A vision for the Leverhulme Community Hub was developed in consultation with the local community. The community hub now provides a charity shop, a laundrette, a home for the local historical society and a community room/multifunctional space. A café, gym facilities, and post office are due to open soon.
Project aims and objectives
South Harris is a remote rural community with high living costs and lower than average incomes. There is a need to create local employment and opportunity to retain the existing population and to encourage more economically active people to move into the area. This is endorsed by national and local policy.
There was strong evidence that showed local support for the development of the community hub and its proposed services. A community consultation revealed that 98% supported the community ownership of the building with less than 2% not in favour. A comment from the consultation said “South Harris has no central hub or activities focal point. This project is vital for South Harris.”
Outcomes and achievements
The steering group wanted to heat the community hub more efficiently as previously the building had an oil boiler and electric heaters. The steering group applied for support from the Scottish Government’s Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES) and received a grant of £103,956.
An Energy Study Report on the building was undertaken by both an external consultant (GreenSpaceLive) and Community Energy Scotland. This report created an action plan to help achieve the steering group’s aspirations of the community hub becoming net zero by 2030.
The steering group has successfully installed:
- An internal and external insulation blanket around the building.
- 48 330 watt solar photovoltaic (PV) panels on the roof.
- Additional insulation materials to the underfloor, walls, and roof areas. This work was funded by CARES.
- Low energy light bulbs.
- Air source heat pumps and associated radiators, distribution pipework and a smart control system. This was funded by CARES.
- Solar thermal panels on the south facing elevation on the building. This work was funded by CARES.
- A smart control system that can monitor and adjust the room temperatures throughout the building.
The steering group is also considering installing electric vehicle and ebike charging stations in the future.
The final part will be to ensure that the building manager, staff, and volunteers are all trained and have an awareness of the installed heating and lighting systems, ensuring that the energy usage is managed and maintained to the required levels.
Lessons learned
The steering group were fortunate to have a mechanical and electrical consultant who considered the suitability of implementing the renewable energy improvements in the building. This resulted in having an optimum location for both the photovoltaic and solar thermal panels on the roof.
One of the challenges that the steering group noted was trying to accommodate the associated pipework, tanks controls, and fitting within the identified space within the plant room. To help overcome this, a portion of the solar thermal plant has been located within the attic space.
Published August 2024