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Leeds school installs wind turbine
Staff and governors at a Leeds primary school will not be complaining if this autumn turns out to be particularly windy.
Meadowfield Primary in Halton Moor has become the first school in the city to install a 15m-high wind turbine to help it beat rapidly rising energy costs.
And if the school has done its sums correctly, the 40,000 turbine will cut the school's electricity bills and provide a source of environmentally-friendly energy.
Mike Shaw, the school's chairman of governors, said: "We are the first school in the city to install such a turbine and, with energy prices going the way they are, we reckon it will mean big savings for us and will have paid for itself within five to 10 years."
The tall structure paid for by the school, which has already become a landmark in the area, will also be used to help the pupils learn about climate change and other green issues.
Mr Shaw said: "We are going to have a display showing how much carbon we are saving and the children will benefit in their lessons by having something on site they can relate to and work with.
"We had the money available and decided this was a project that would bring long-term benefits to the school and the wider community."
The ambitious scheme nearly failed at the planning stage. Council planning officials argued that the turbine would be too tall and out of keeping with a residential area and recommended that permission be refused.
But councillors felt it was acceptable and opted to grant approval.
Mr Shaw said: "It is one of a new generation of turbine with slightly thinner blades and it does not look so chunky."
And there was more good news for children at the four-year-old school with work due to begin – when the weather allows – on improving a playing field which has been out of bounds to them for 11 months.
The school took the decision to put the uneven and badly rutted field out of bounds after an independent consultant's report condemned it as unfit and unsafe.
Earlier this year, the council agreed the field was unfit and said a tender would be let for it to be relevelled and returfed. The contract has now been let.
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Weather for Leeds
Saturday 11 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: -2 C to 0 C
Wind Speed: 8 mph
Wind direction: South
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 2 C to 5 C
Wind Speed: 8 mph
Wind direction: North west
