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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in LA15 (Westmorland and Furness)

See if solar pays off for you in Westmorland and Furness — price, savings and payback in under a minute (official UK data).

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Change the settings below to see how costs and savings work for your situation.

System Size

Roof Direction

Battery Storage

Export Value

Your Numbers

Break-even
12.4 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£8,138
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£657
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£8,297
After paying itself off, you're this much ahead

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How we calculate this

Solar generation: Based on typical south-facing roof at 35° angle. We account for weather, dirt, and system losses (14%).

How much you'll use directly:

  • Without battery: You'll use about 40% of what you generate. The rest gets sold back to the grid.
  • With 5 kWh battery: You'll use about 70% (battery stores extra for evening use).
  • With 10 kWh battery: You'll use about 75% (more storage means less exported).
  • Panel-only payback: Bigger systems don’t shorten payback—cost and savings rise together per kW.
  • Battery & payback: Batteries raise self-use and cut bills, but added hardware cost often lengthens break-even at typical UK rates.
  • When a battery can still make sense:
    • Evening-heavy usage patterns
    • Time-of-use tariffs / cheap night rates
    • Low export rate vs. high unit rate
    • Heat pump or EV charging synergy
    • Optional backup/resilience (system-dependent)
    • Lower evening-hour CO₂ vs. grid

Costs: Battery prices are typically £700 per kWh. Export tariffs vary by supplier (usually 5–15p per kWh).

Grid connection: Systems up to about 3.7 kW typically need just a notification (G98). Larger systems may need permission (G99).

These are typical values based on average usage patterns. Your actual results will vary based on your roof, shading, and how you use electricity.

Your area in context

In North West, the current unit rate is 27.11p/kWh with a 51.16p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 976 kWh/kW — 106 above the regional median (870).

Read the full story

A typical roof here lands around 4.0 kW, with most eligible homes comfortably fitting within 3–6 kW. Each kilowatt of panels produces roughly 976 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 27.1p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
27.1p/kWh
Standing charge
51.2p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
976 kWh/kW
Export price (baseline)
10p/kWh

Browse the scenarios below. Each battery size has its own expand — open the one that matches your plan (or just explore). For each system size (2–8 kW) we show annual output, how much you use directly, what gets exported, annual benefit, upfront cost, break-even, and a 20-year net. Negative numbers are possible — that’s the honest trade-off when adding more battery than your usage profile justifies.

No battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £822, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 12.4 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1951 kWh 781 kWh 1171 kWh £212 £117 £329 £4,069 12.4 yrs £2,505
3 kW 2927 kWh 1171 kWh 1756 kWh £317 £176 £493 £6,104 12.4 yrs £3,757
4 kW 3903 kWh 1561 kWh 2342 kWh £423 £234 £657 £8,138 12.4 yrs £5,010
5 kW 4878 kWh 1951 kWh 2927 kWh £529 £293 £822 £10,173 12.4 yrs £6,262
6 kW 5854 kWh 2342 kWh 3513 kWh £635 £351 £986 £12,207 12.4 yrs £7,515
7 kW 6830 kWh 2732 kWh 4098 kWh £741 £410 £1,150 £14,242 12.4 yrs £8,767
8 kW 7806 kWh 3122 kWh 4683 kWh £846 £468 £1,315 £16,276 12.4 yrs £10,019

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

3 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £989, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 12.4 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1951 kWh 1171 kWh 781 kWh £317 £78 £395 £6,169 15.6 yrs £1,740
3 kW 2927 kWh 1756 kWh 1171 kWh £476 £117 £593 £8,204 13.8 yrs £3,661
4 kW 3903 kWh 2342 kWh 1561 kWh £635 £156 £791 £10,238 12.9 yrs £5,581
5 kW 4878 kWh 2927 kWh 1951 kWh £794 £195 £989 £12,273 12.4 yrs £7,501
6 kW 5854 kWh 3513 kWh 2342 kWh £952 £234 £1,186 £14,307 12.1 yrs £9,421
7 kW 6830 kWh 4098 kWh 2732 kWh £1,111 £273 £1,384 £16,342 11.8 yrs £11,341
8 kW 7806 kWh 4683 kWh 3122 kWh £1,270 £312 £1,582 £18,376 11.6 yrs £13,262

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,072, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 12.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1951 kWh 1366 kWh 585 kWh £370 £59 £429 £7,569 17.6 yrs £1,008
3 kW 2927 kWh 2049 kWh 878 kWh £555 £88 £643 £9,604 14.9 yrs £3,262
4 kW 3903 kWh 2732 kWh 1171 kWh £741 £117 £858 £11,638 13.6 yrs £5,516
5 kW 4878 kWh 3415 kWh 1464 kWh £926 £146 £1,072 £13,673 12.8 yrs £7,770
6 kW 5854 kWh 4098 kWh 1756 kWh £1,111 £176 £1,287 £15,707 12.2 yrs £10,024
7 kW 6830 kWh 4781 kWh 2049 kWh £1,296 £205 £1,501 £17,742 11.8 yrs £12,279
8 kW 7806 kWh 5464 kWh 2342 kWh £1,481 £234 £1,715 £19,776 11.5 yrs £14,533

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

7.5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,097, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 14.1 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1951 kWh 1425 kWh 527 kWh £386 £53 £439 £9,319 21.2 yrs £-542
3 kW 2927 kWh 2137 kWh 790 kWh £579 £79 £658 £11,354 17.2 yrs £1,813
4 kW 3903 kWh 2849 kWh 1054 kWh £772 £105 £878 £13,388 15.3 yrs £4,167
5 kW 4878 kWh 3561 kWh 1317 kWh £965 £132 £1,097 £15,423 14.1 yrs £6,521
6 kW 5854 kWh 4274 kWh 1581 kWh £1,159 £158 £1,317 £17,457 13.3 yrs £8,875
7 kW 6830 kWh 4986 kWh 1844 kWh £1,352 £184 £1,536 £19,492 12.7 yrs £11,230
8 kW 7806 kWh 5698 kWh 2108 kWh £1,545 £211 £1,756 £21,526 12.3 yrs £13,584

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

10 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,114, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 15.4 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1951 kWh 1464 kWh 488 kWh £397 £49 £446 £11,069 24.8 yrs £-2,158
3 kW 2927 kWh 2195 kWh 732 kWh £595 £73 £668 £13,104 19.6 yrs £263
4 kW 3903 kWh 2927 kWh 976 kWh £794 £98 £891 £15,138 17.0 yrs £2,684
5 kW 4878 kWh 3659 kWh 1220 kWh £992 £122 £1,114 £17,173 15.4 yrs £5,105
6 kW 5854 kWh 4391 kWh 1464 kWh £1,190 £146 £1,337 £19,207 14.4 yrs £7,526
7 kW 6830 kWh 5122 kWh 1707 kWh £1,389 £171 £1,559 £21,242 13.6 yrs £9,947
8 kW 7806 kWh 5854 kWh 1951 kWh £1,587 £195 £1,782 £23,276 13.1 yrs £12,368

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

13.5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,131, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 17.4 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1951 kWh 1503 kWh 449 kWh £407 £45 £452 £13,519 29.9 yrs £-4,474
3 kW 2927 kWh 2254 kWh 673 kWh £611 £67 £678 £15,554 22.9 yrs £-1,987
4 kW 3903 kWh 3005 kWh 898 kWh £815 £90 £904 £17,588 19.4 yrs £501
5 kW 4878 kWh 3756 kWh 1122 kWh £1,018 £112 £1,131 £19,623 17.4 yrs £2,989
6 kW 5854 kWh 4508 kWh 1346 kWh £1,222 £135 £1,357 £21,657 16.0 yrs £5,477
7 kW 6830 kWh 5259 kWh 1571 kWh £1,426 £157 £1,583 £23,692 15.0 yrs £7,965
8 kW 7806 kWh 6010 kWh 1795 kWh £1,629 £180 £1,809 £25,726 14.2 yrs £10,452

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

Figures are illustrative and use the same method as the calculator above. For exact results, adjust your roof direction, tariff, and usage in the calculator.

Insights for LA15

Figures below are tailored to LA15 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #1478 of 2182
4.7 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~10 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #814 of 2997
10.7 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£758 /yr • £8,138 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #2179 of 2997
24.6% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£187 fixed • ~£758 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
27.11p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
51.16p/day
Local Sunshine
976kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~976 kWh per year. A typical home uses ~2,700 kWh per year.
Typical System Size
4.0kW
For houses & bungalows in this area

Local Property Data

Property Types

Houses: 81% • Flats: 10% • Bungalows: 8% Based on 1,865 properties

Coverage

Westmorland and Furness (100%)

Areas Covered

Dalton South, Dalton North, Low Furness, Old Barrow and Hindpool

Data Sources & Assumptions

Solar yield: PVGIS (EU Joint Research Centre), January 2025 data

Electricity rates: Ofgem price cap, Q4 2025

Installation costs: MCS certified installer data, March 2025

Property data: EPC open data (Open Government Licence), aggregated

All estimates are typical values. Actual results vary based on your specific situation, roof characteristics, and usage patterns.

Compare nearby areas

Nearby in North West

LA16 (Westmorland and Furness)
≈3.9 km away
Local sunshine: ~987 kWh/kWp · +1% vs LA15
LA13 (Westmorland and Furness)
≈4.5 km away
Local sunshine: ~981 kWh/kWp · +1% vs LA15
LA14 (Westmorland and Furness)
≈5.5 km away
Local sunshine: ~981 kWh/kWp · +1% vs LA15
LA12 (Westmorland and Furness)
≈7.0 km away
Local sunshine: ~948 kWh/kWp · -3% vs LA15
LA18 (Cumberland)
≈8.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~967 kWh/kWp · -1% vs LA15
LA17 (Westmorland and Furness)
≈9.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~957 kWh/kWp · -2% vs LA15

Similar sunshine across the UK

PL18 (Cornwall)
~976 kWh/kWp · -0% vs LA15
EX22 (Torridge)
~976 kWh/kWp · +0% vs LA15
DN31 (North East Lincolnshire)
~976 kWh/kWp · -0% vs LA15