At Varndean on Thursday I met with students from the Eco Club and opened the sustainable “Schoolhaus” building.

This will generate five times its own electricity needs from solar panels on the roof, with any surplus electricity fed to the rest of the school, or exported back to the grid.

The Varndean Schoolhaus will generate £3,200 per annum in extra revenue for the school and its energy efficient design will also save on day-to-day running costs.

On Friday I went to St Bartholomew’s Primary School to switch on new solar panels.

These were installed thanks to £10,000 raised by the school community and local businesses through the Solar Schools crowd-funding initiative, a 10:10 project that aims to put clean energy in classrooms all over the country.

The 39 solar panels will power school lights, computers and other equipment, with the money saved on electricity bills used to buy books, sports equipment and other resources.

Similar to the Varndean Schoolhaus, any surplus electricity will be sold to the National Grid, including that generated during school holidays, which will raise extra funds.

The Solar Schools project has also been an opportunity for pupils to learn about green energy and sustainability and, now that the panels are switched on, a display board in the school will show how much power is generated each day.

Just before going to St Bartholomew’s I signed a Friends of the Earth petition that calls on Education Secretary Michael Gove to make it easier for schools to put up solar panels.

Government financial rules leave many schools struggling to meet the upfront cost of the panels, even though initiatives such as Solar Schools can lead to schools saving up to £8,000 per year on energy bills.

The petition is at http://bit.ly/1jPve9U so please add your voice to the call in support of schools going solar.

Image: Varndean Headteacher William Deighan with Caroline as the plaque is unveiled on the Varndean Schoolhaus.