End £30bn bank benefits, tax wealth like work, break the gas price link, launch a rooftop solar revolution and build 1.4m homes. Peoplenomics in five steps.
Street Solar: How Sheffield Neighbours Cut Costs by 40%
Neighbours on one Sheffield street clubbed together to bulk-buy solar panels, cutting costs by over 40%. Now their summer bills go negative. Here's how.
How a lightbulb moment led us to a brighter future
"It started with an idea I heard that every street could be a power station," explains Barry James, the founder of the Green Streets Club.
With a group of his neighbours, Barry wondered if they could "bulk buy" their way to cheaper solar PV on their roofs.
"It was about bringing people together and getting the benefit of green energy," he adds.
Barry used his neighbourhood Covid-era WhatsApp group in the summer of 2023 to gather the residents of Carter Knowle Road in Sheffield at their local cafe.
One was John Wells, 73, who said: "Groups of people were asking questions and so you felt you gradually got better informed about the project and gained some confidence that it wasn't just the cowboy coming through the door selling you solar panels."
Barry says: "We originally thought that having a street together to take to installers would be great from their point of view because it would be like a bulk buy.
"We didn't realise that even more important for them is that the cost of getting a customer, the cost of getting a sale, is huge. It can be 40% or more of what the customer ends up paying.
"I had already said I think we can get close to 50% reduction and we got over 40%. I spoke to a couple of dozen installers, we narrowed it down before we got a clear winner."
Ten homes went ahead with the first phase of installations in 2024, costing residents around £9,000 each.
Another neighbour James Randall, 56, had been curious about solar but said Green Streets "was the thing that pressed the button for me".
"By coming together and collectively identifying a supplier we wanted to go with it gave us a sense of confirmation that we were doing the right thing and that it would work out," he said.
And James found a novel way to pay for his solar panels and batteries – by maxing out a new credit card with a 24-month interest-free period.
"I worked out that I could just about afford the repayments over 24 months, particularly if I was going to be saving money on my electricity," he explained.
"I'm not going to pretend it paid for itself. It didn't. Probably over about four years though, return on investment."
John and James have seen their electricity bills drop dramatically – and even go negative in the summer when their electricity supplier pays them for the electricity that they don't need and cannot store.
Barry is supporting three other streets but is launching a new "catalysis package" called Greener Patch to help others follow the path created by Carter Knowle Road.
Other relevant stories
Britain paid £43bn extra for energy in 2023 because gas sets the price. Wholesale price control, a North Sea deal and breaking the link could slash UK bills.
UK energy bills are at the mercy of casino capitalism. Control wholesale prices, extend it to North Sea oil and gas and break the gas link – that's how we win.
Tony Blair is wrong on green energy. High bills come from fossil fuels and a rigged market — not renewables.
Cold homes, high bills and rising anxiety show Britain’s energy system is failing. It’s time to put people before profit.