Sewell Advisory works as an estates partner to LIFT company Citycare, delivering projects and advice across Citycare’s extensive LIFT estate. LIFT – Local Improvement Finance Trust – is a way to fund the creation and operation of health centres in the community, in a partnership between the public and private sector. 

With the NHS aiming to reach net zero by 2040, it’s important that the primary care estate plays its part in reducing carbon emissions and making the most of new technologies.   

We worked with Citycare’s Marfleet Health Centre to make sustainability upgrades to this twenty-year-old building. 

166 photovoltaic panels were installed on the roof of the building, with the centre remaining open and operating as normal throughout the six-week installation programme, with minimal disturbance for healthcare staff and visitors. 

The panels will generate around 56,000KWh of energy each year, which covers 62% of the centre’s electricity requirements. On sunny days, the panels can also feed energy back into the grid. 

The decrease in electricity bills will save the NHS around £9,500 each year, and will reduce the overall carbon footprint of the building by 14 tonnes annually. 

We’re now planning on delivering similar schemes at two more suitable buildings in Hull, alongside voltage optimisation at all 13 Hull LIFT health centres, giving the dual benefit of cutting energy bills and contributing to the drive to net zero.