As healthcare organisations work to meet ambitious Net Zero Carbon targets, solar photovoltaic (PV) technology is becoming a central element in estate-wide decarbonisation strategies. For NHS and private healthcare estates teams, integrating solar PV offers the potential to reduce operational costs, improve energy resilience, and make measurable progress towards sustainability commitments, but it also introduces technical, operational, and compliance considerations that must be addressed from the outset.
Garland UK’s latest CPD, Solar PV for Sustainable Buildings: Design, Installation, and Compliance Essentials, has been developed to help estates managers, designers, and procurement teams navigate the complexities of solar PV integration in healthcare environments. The training provides the knowledge and tools to specify and implement PV systems safely, efficiently, and with long-term performance in mind.
Healthcare estates operate under unique constraints. Roof space is often shared with critical plant, maintenance access routes must remain unobstructed, and works frequently take place in live, patient-facing environments. This CPD addresses these realities directly, helping specifiers anticipate potential challenges well before procurement or installation begins.
Bridging the Gap Between Design & Delivery
While solar PV is typically considered during early design stages of a retrofit or new-build project, its impact on building performance, maintenance requirements, and roof warranties is often only felt years later. For healthcare estates, where roof systems may also support life-critical infrastructure, these considerations are even more significant.
The CPD moves beyond design theory to provide practical, operational insight, from assessing structural load capacity and planning safe access, to coordinating waterproofing and PV systems in a way that safeguards both. Participants gain a clear understanding of how to integrate solar without compromising roof integrity, warranty coverage, or operational safety.
A Single Point of Accountability
One of the common challenges for estates teams is the split responsibility between different contractors for roofing and solar installations. This can lead to uncertainty over who is accountable when problems arise. Garland UK addresses this head-on with a Single-Point Guarantee that covers both the roofing and solar PV systems. This integrated responsibility helps healthcare estates simplify maintenance planning, streamline dispute resolution, and protect their investment for the system’s full operational life.
Future-Proofing the Healthcare Estate
Energy price volatility and the growing emphasis on carbon reporting at board level are pushing healthcare organisations to act decisively on energy strategy. Solar PV remains one of the few technologies that can simultaneously reduce energy costs and carbon emissions. However, achieving these benefits depends on effective specification, correct installation, and coordinated asset management.
The CPD also explores how solar PV fits within long-term decarbonisation pathways, including its role alongside other technologies and its alignment with public sector funding opportunities such as the GB Energy solar panels for NHS sites. Attendees will leave with a clear understanding of how to plan solar PV projects that integrate seamlessly with existing estate management strategies and sustainability goals.
Expert Led, Sector Focused Training
Developed by Garland UK’s in-house technical experts and approved by RIBA, this CPD provides trusted, peer-reviewed insight at a time when decision-makers need it most. It is tailored to professionals who are responsible for balancing budgets, maintaining compliance, and delivering sustainable outcomes across a diverse healthcare estate.
As Andy Rooke at Garland UK, explains, "For healthcare estates teams, getting solar PV right from the outset means securing long-term energy savings, reducing carbon emissions, and protecting vital building assets. This CPD gives decision-makers the practical knowledge to avoid costly design and installation errors, ensure system reliability, and maximise the return on their investment, all while supporting their organisation’s decarbonisation goals."
Book Your CPD Session Today
Garland UK offers this CPD as an in-person session for estates teams across the UK. Whether you're planning a major retrofit programme or considering solar for capital works, this training provides the technical and strategic insight to move forward with confidence.
To arrange a CPD session and explore Garland UK’s full range of accredited training modules, visit: www.garlanduk.com
