Community share offer launched for Lichfield Leisure Centre solar project

Staffordshire Community Energy has launched a new community share offer this week, giving individuals and organisations the opportunity to invest in the solar installation at Lichfield Leisure Centre and support long-term community ownership of local energy infrastructure.

Delivered in partnership with Lichfield District Council, the scheme saw 395 solar panels installed on the roof of the new leisure centre in autumn 2025. The system is already generating renewable electricity, reducing energy costs and carbon emissions from day one.

The share offer will refinance the initial development funding, enabling the project to transition into community ownership. This model ensures that financial surpluses are retained locally and reinvested into priorities such as tackling fuel poverty, supporting sustainability initiatives and developing future community energy projects.

Mike Kinghan MBE, Staffordshire Community Energy, said:

“As a Community Benefit Society owned by its members, Staffordshire Community Energy has a powerful not-for-profit community business model addressing climate change while also recycling financial surpluses back into local communities. Our aim has always been to keep the benefits of clean energy here in Staffordshire. Lichfield Leisure Centre shows what that means in practice: a brand-new leisure centre receiving power from the sun, lower bills from day one, and a community fund to support local projects. It’s proof of what’s possible when people come together to take control of their energy future.”

Staffordshire Community Energy will also host an online webinar on the evening of Thursday 14 May, providing an opportunity for partners, stakeholders and potential investors to learn more about the project and ask questions.

Full details of the share offer, including how to invest, as well as registering for the online webinar, are available online: Home – Staffordshire Community Energy