National Solar Schools Program The National Solar Schools Program was funded by the Australian Government and administered by the Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts. Eligibility criteria and rebate levels are available from the Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts website at www.environment.gov.au.
The National Solar Schools Program (NSSP) was a Commonwealth Government initiative that provided grants of up to $50,000 for solar panels and other energy and water conservation measures including solar hot water systems, water tanks, external window shading and energy efficient lighting.
Over five funding rounds, NSSP grants were issued to 789 Victorian government schools and used to install solar panels and other energy and water conservation measures.
Learning resources have been developed to assist in understanding the efficiency and financial benefits of installing solar panels. For more information, see:
Schools who received grants as part of the NSSP were issued with an Information Booklet containing maintenance registers, educational material and case studies. For useful learning resources, case studies, and information on the operation of solar PV systems, see: National Solar Schools Program
The Australian solar industry is a strongly regulated industry with state and territory governments responsible for setting and regulating workplace and electrical standards in relation to roof top solar photovoltaic panel installations across Australia.
For schools who are considering purchasing solar panels, guidelines were developed to help you understand the benefits, know the installation process and get the best outcome. For more information, see: Clean Energy Council’s solar PV.
Success of the Program
Over $217 million was provided to 5,310 schools (or almost 60 per cent of all Australian schools) to install renewable energy systems, rainwater tanks and a range energy efficiency measures.
The solar power systems installed produce enough electricity to power the equivalent of 4600 average households every day.
The funding helped to educate students about renewable energy and energy efficiency, and that everyday actions can prevent the production of millions of tonnes of carbon pollution.
The programme closed on 30 June 2013.
It would be good to see the program restarted and expanded to include all government buildings and public infrastructure.