Solar Together scheme

Chichester District Council has teamed up with councils across Sussex as part of 'Solar Together Sussex'. Led by West Sussex County Council, and working with group-buying experts, this scheme offers homeowners and small and medium-sized businesses the opportunity to purchase high quality solar panels and battery storage at a competitive price.

When the scheme is active, there is a period of time where homeowners can complete an application online. If no scheme is currently open, homeowners can still register their interest in order to be notified when a scheme opens. Households that are thought to be suitable for this group-buying scheme will be contacted by letter and invited to take part, although anyone can register their interest at any time.

The scheme works as follows:

1. Registration: The homeowner registers their interest in the scheme for free at: Solar Together (opens new window) and provide information about their roof.

2. Active scheme application window: The application window opens with a deadline to submit applications. Anyone who has registered interest will be notified and letters sent to homeowners.  

3. Auction: Once all applications have been received, a supplier 'auction' will be held. During this phase approved solar suppliers bid to supply solar panels and/or battery storage to all of the households who have registered their interest, with the most competitive bid winning. The group-buying scheme provides an economy of scale, so the more people that register, the better the deal should be for each household.

4. Personal recommendation: After the auction and the contract has been awarded to the approved supplier(s), a personal recommendation and quote will be emailed to all those who have signed up. This is based on their roof details, and will be provided by the supplier whose quote offered the best value for money at the end of the auction.

5. Decision: The homeowner then decides if they want to accept the recommendation and quote. There is no obligation to continue.

6. Installation: If the recommendation and quote is accepted, the winning supplier will be in contact to survey the roof and set an installation date.