We are a small village cricket club in Kent. With rising energy costs it is becoming increasingly difficult to keep up with these costs. Our plan is to implement roof solar panels to reduce those costs. This would be a big help towards supporting the survival of our club. We have a number of activities that we are planning to help keep the club running. We are currently renovating our 50 year old toilets ourselves with some local businesses generously donating bathroom goods to help us. The club hosts several events each year which brings the community together. We also run a number of kids cricket teams that support the club as the youngsters grow up and make their way into our senior teams. We have recently elected a new committee that is dedicated to making the club more self sustainable. Lots of new ideas are being discussed and the solar panels project of one of those. We are seeing some funding from the ECB, we have recently raised £2000 from our first event of the year.
What we'll deliver:
- Solar roof panels installed
Why it's a great idea:
Once solar panels are installed our energy costs will be hugely reduced. We would initially only be able to afford panels giving instant conversion during daylight. We would like to progress to install battery storage so that we can store unused energy for use when the panels aren’t providing energy. This will help support more events that we hold. More work planned at the club will provide a welcoming and friendly environment not only on match days for cricket, but also for the evening events we run, including hitting out the club for parties etc. The more attractive we can e the environment the more chance we will have of surviving through these tough economic times.
Steps to get it done:
- We have had our first club event of the season, a race night, raising £2.5k towards our goal
- We have applied for ECB funding for which we are through the first stage and have been approved to continue.
A further big project we are looking at in our 5 year plan is to increase the clubhouse footprint by opening out our bar area with patio doors onto our balcony which overlooks the cricket pitch which sits within a beautiful surrounding. This is all part of the bigger picture to keep the club going into the next century. It’s a challenge to keep the club afloat month by month, however we are making strides in the right direction, the outlook for the club is looking brighter now. With the aid of additional funding we should see the changes required to move the club forward and Mel this community and sorting establishment open for many years to come.
