A GRADE one listed church has installed solar panels onto its roof to help reduce its carbon footprint.

North Curry Parish Church in North Curry now has 54 solar panels on its nave and south isle roofs.

Teresa Jones, Secretary of the Parochial Church Council, said: “We decided to install solar panels as we wanted to promote the benefits of renewable energy to our congregation and the wider community and we hope it will show other churches in the area what can be achieved.

“The solar panels will also provide additional income, which will be put back into the church and be used to help maintain the upkeep of the building.”

Phil Grabham, managing director of Solar Systems, who run the project, said installing panels on any church or old building is always more of a challenge.

He added: “It was important that the aesthetics of the church were maintained so we had to make sure that the panels weren’t going to be visible from the ground. We also had to take care not to cause any damage to the stonework either, which dates back to medieval times.”