Sevenoaks Town Council awarded £20,000 grant for solar batteries at Bat & Ball Centre

Published: 08 August 2025

 

Sevenoaks Town Council is pleased to announce we have secured a £20,000 grant from the West Kent Rural Grant Scheme and Rural England Prosperity Fund to support the installation of solar batteries at the Bat & Ball Centre.

Although solar panels were installed during the Bat & Ball Centre’s construction, funding for accompanying solar batteries was not available at the time. This new grant will now enable the installation of this vital energy storage technology.

The Bat & Ball Centre is a modern, multi-use community facility owned by the Town Council. The building underwent a major refurbishment, completed in 2020, replacing the outdated 1970s Sevenoaks Community Centre with a vibrant community hub that supports a diverse mix of daytime and evening activities. Open year-round, it hosts events including weddings, meetings, conferences, and classes.

The total cost of the solar battery project is £40,000. The remaining £20,000 will be funded through the Town Council’s Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) income, which is paid by developers to support local improvements.

The solar batteries will store excess energy produced from the solar panels and make use of cheaper overnight tariffs. This will significantly enhance the building’s energy efficiency and sustainability.

This initiative is part of Sevenoaks Town Council’s Green Community Investment Plan, demonstrating our continued commitment to environmentally responsible projects that benefit the local area.

Councillor Claire Shea, Leader of Sevenoaks Town Council, commented, ‘We are delighted to be able to make our community centre even more energy efficient, and to make good use of renewables. Our Town Council is determined to reduce our impact on the environment and to support residents to do the same. We need to be resilient to the changing climate and energy demands, and we are pleased to move a step forward with our modernised centre at Bat and Ball’.

Visit our Bat & Ball Centre webpage for more information about the centre.