Energy Audit for St Mary's Church
Duligong Honid
Energy Audit
The Brief
Sheffield City Council commissioned Tomson Consulting Ltd to conduct a comprehensive energy and carbon audit at St Mary's Church, Sheffield. The aim was to identify cost-effective and practical measures to reduce energy consumption and associated costs. St Mary's Church, a Grade II* listed building constructed in the 19th century, serves both religious and community functions.
Areas
Energy Audit
Key Stakeholders
Sheffield City Council, St Mary's Church, Sheffield, Tomson Consulting Ltd
Opportunities
The church's space heating is currently provided by an oversized gas-fired boiler, which contributes to inefficiencies such as short cycling, increased operational costs, and energy waste. Additionally, the church features single-glazed windows and a mix of LED and fluorescent lighting, all manually controlled. With the church's GHG emissions amounting to 53.2 tonnes of CO2e annually, there was considerable scope for implementing energy-saving measures.
Building on our extensive experience in energy management for historic and listed buildings, this audit aimed to explore solutions that would enhance the church's energy performance while respecting its historical integrity.
Challenges
One of the primary challenges was the historical status of St Mary's Church, which imposes strict limitations on the types of modifications that can be made. The church's Grade II* listing requires that any proposed changes must preserve the building's aesthetic and architectural value. Additionally, the degraded insulation and outdated, oversized heating system posed barriers to achieving energy efficiency. Another challenge was ensuring that any new systems, such as heating or renewable energy installations, would be compatible with the existing infrastructure and remain visually unobtrusive. The potential for roof-mounted solar photovoltaic (PV) panels had to be carefully considered to ensure that they would not detract from the church's historical appearance.
