The KIND SEED Centre is an ambitious and innovative environmental project, providing hands on education and learning for some of the most disadvantaged children and families within Merseyside.

The site prior to the two additional solar arrays.

We first established two separate south facing roof areas onto which we could add a solar array, linking these with the existing array to the mains power supply. This means that on days when they are generating more electricity than they are using, the surplus is automatically sold back to the national grid. The new arrays are sited on the front of the old building, and on the small roof above the roof garden (see below).

The site now has a solar PV capacity of 5.7 Kwp, generating approximately 4725 Kwh’s of electricity per year, reducing their CO2 emissions by 2.5 tonnes per year.

Whilst the building already had rainwater harvesting system, with an underground tank, for the newer part of the building, mains water was still being used to flush the toilets in the old building. A new system was installed to capture the rain from the old building, into above ground storage tanks, which is then used to flush toilets, water the garden, and clean the yard and vehicles. The system being above ground also enables the staff at KIND to include it in their teaching of sustainable living.

We are currently involved in projects to improve the metering and display system, so that the staff can improve the demonstration and teaching of how the many renewable energy systems in the building work.

Stephen Yip commented “The Centre is working towards sustainability and part of that drive has brought us into contact with Eco Environments. They have been an excellent partner providing valuable information, contacts and have enabled us to develop the alternative energy side of the Centre. We are also working with them to look at other ways of making the KIND SEED Centre more sustainable and a model for other organisations and groups within our community. I would recommend Eco Environments to any group looking to improve its environmental credentials”.

For more information about the work of KIND please look at their website
www.kind.org.uk