Solar Panels at Oaken Grove Community Centre Haxby

Aim

We are looking for the remaining funds to help us complete our solar panel project at Oaken Grove Community Centre in Haxby near York.

Who we are

Haxby & Wigginton Youth & Community Association are as small local charity responsible for the running of Oaken Grove Community Centre in Haxby, near York.  Our aim is to provide friendly and accessible facilities in order to enhance the wellbeing of local residents in Haxby, Wigginton and the surrounding area.

We are a member led charity, who rely heavily on a small group of dedicated volunteers.

What we do

As custodians of the community centre we are responsible for it's maintenance and upkeep.  We manage the building to enable a variety of activities to take place.  These may include:

• Movement and music sessions for adults with additional needs
• Social events for local residents
• Yoga
• Children's and adult art and craft groups
• A local junior football team
• Our youth groups

What we want to do

We are recently entered an exciting phase which will see Haxby and Wigginton Explore Library permanently based on site within the centre, as well as improved toilet facilities and a reading café.

Our overall ambition for the project was for the centre to be as environmentally efficient as possible, but solar panels and a ground source heat pump were unfortunately beyond the project budget.  Following the dramatic increase in energy prices, our aim to install alternative energy solutions to the building have been put into sharp focus, we are seeking funding to enable us to achieve this.

Why we are seeking funding

By installing these alternative energy sources we will be ensuring that our building is as environmentally friendly as possible.  We will also be protecting the charity from further energy price increases.  In doing so, we will also be able to ensure that our hire charges can be kept low for our hirers, which include:

• groups for adults with additional needs
• sessions for bereaved children
• activities for older or socially isolated individuals
• small local groups and charities  
• birthday parties and celebrations

These improvements would mean that the charity can still offer the space for its own programme of community activities, both for adults within the local area and our established Youth Provision.

Our project will prepare and protect our community against the impacts of climate change by making our community building more sustainable and resilient. Rising energy costs, worsened by climate-related pressures on resources, threaten the future of many local facilities, including ours. By installing solar panels, we will generate renewable energy, stabilise our running costs, and reduce our carbon footprint. This will safeguard our building as a safe, welcoming space for local residents during increasingly frequent climate-related challenges, such as heatwaves or extreme weather. Protecting this facility means that vulnerable groups, including bereaved children, adults with additional needs, older and socially isolated individuals, and parents with young children continue to have support

How we’ll spend the money raised

We are so close to being able to install our solar panels at Oaken Grove Community Centre.  The £11,395 raised in our previous project virtually covers our preferred quote for solar panels, however additional surveys and increases in costs mean we are £1500 short for achieving our aim.  If we were to be lucky enough to exceed this initial target we would use any additional funding to purchase a battery to be able to store surplus energy generated.

How you can help

There are two simple ways to get involved and support our project:

1. Make a donation

Every pledge gets us closer to our goal. Early support can help build momentum and inspire others to give too.

2. Spread the word

Share our project with friends, family and your wider network. The more people we reach, the more likely we are to succeed.

Thank you

Thank you for taking the time to find out more about us and the work we hope to continue to do.  We really appreciate your interest in this project.  If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact us.

This project successfully funded on 13th October 2025