Schools fail to grasp energy efficiency opportunities

Expenditure on energy costs by local authority-maintained schools in England has increased by 6.5 per cent per pupil over the past five years, according to new analysis of government data by eLight, a “light-as-a-service” (LaaS) business. The average annual spend per pupil increased from £74.56 in 2014-15 to £79.42 in 2019-20, according to the latest data available.

Yorkshire & the Humber and the North East are the only regions where schools have collectively reduced how much they spend on energy per pupil, cutting expenditure by 4.4 per cent and 0.9 per cent respectively. Every other region of England increased its average energy expenditure per pupil, with schools in Inner London doing so by a huge 23.5 per cent.

Across England, nurseries decreased their energy spend per pupil by 2.3 per cent, and secondary schools by 0.4 per cent. However, average energy spend per pupil in primary schools increased by 10.9 per cent.

With eLight’s analysis demonstrating no significant change in average energy pricesover the time period reviewed, the company says the figures show that progress on energy efficiency in schools has been painfully slow or, in many cases, non-existent.

eLight is warning that schools must act now to improve their energy efficiency if they are to make a meaningful contribution to the UK’s ambitious net zero targets. It says energy efficiency is low-hanging fruit that could make a huge dent in schools’ carbon emission reduction targets, and that there are easily implemented, capital-free solutions available to the education sector that are not being accessed.

According to The Carbon Trust, energy bills in UK schools amount to £543m per year, with 50 per cent of a school’s total electricity cost being lighting. If every school in the UK implemented any type of energy efficient technology, over £100m could be saved each year.

Harvey Sinclair (pictured), CEO of eEnergy, eLight’s parent company, said: “These figures demonstrate an uncomfortable truth for the education sector – that most schools are still treading water on the implementation of energy-efficient technology. Nearly half of the world’s energy is lost through wastage. Energy efficiency could make a huge difference to our net zero ambitions, but most schools are still lagging behind.

“The solutions exist, but they are not being deployed fast enough. For example, we’ve made great progress in upgrading schools to energy-efficient LED lighting, but with 80 per cent of schools yet to make the switch, there’s an enormous opportunity to make a collective reduction in carbon footprint and save a lot of money on energy bills. Our model means the entire project is financed, doesn’t require any upfront expenditure, and repayments are more than covered by the energy savings made.”

eLight’s business model helps organisations reduce carbon emissions and save money by switching to more efficient LED lighting. eLight designs and installs the lighting, allowing schools to upgrade their legacy lighting systems without any upfront capital payments. For a fixed monthly service fee, the system is then maintained by eLight, with the energy savings more than meeting the costs throughout the typical seven-year contract.

Regional breakdown: Energy expenditure per pupil

Region	Energy cost per pupil financial year 2014-15	Energy cost per pupil financial year 2019-20	Percentage change
Yorkshire and the Humber	80.57	77.05	-4.4 per cent
North East	86.37	85.63	-0.9 per cent
West Midlands	76.42	78.2	2.3 per cent
North West	80.12	83.54	4.3 per cent
East Midlands	70.3	73.64	4.8 per cent
South East	69.43	73.01	5.2 per cent
East of England	70.89	74.66	5.3 per cent
South West	65.31	74.47	14.0 per cent
Outer London	70.58	80.93	14.7 per cent
Inner London	78.88	97.43	23.5 per cent
England	74.56	79.42	6.5 per cent