Medieval place of worship finds 21st century way to shed light on its fuel bills

More than 60 photovoltaic panels have been fitted to the south-facing roof of Holy Trinity Church, Hull, overlooking the Humber.

The church, which dates to around 1300, and is considered one of the “greatest of the great” medieval parish churches in England, has been struggling to balance its books.

While the panels will bring in a welcome income of some £6,500 a year, the church still faces a “horrendous” £11,000 gas bill.

The £75,000 project was made possible by the generosity of a local businessman, who donated most of the money, with the rest coming from a £6,000 grant.

Church warden Tim Wilson, whose brainchild it was, said: “I am just thrilled that we have got to this stage, and with the generosity of the individual who made this possible.”

Vicar Dr Neal Barnes said they were “turning in the right direction” with their finances, but were still making a large deficit.

He said: “We are just so grateful to the chap who gave us this money. It means we can recoup some money and it sends out the message that we want to improve our green credentials. Long term the much bigger challenge will be reducing the amount of gas. This is a good start.”