Sunlight is helping to put hot water on tap for thousands of schoolchildren visiting a council-run outdoor centre in Ilkley.

The Nell Bank Centre on Denton Road has received a massive boost in energy efficiency by using solar panels to heat water for showers used by pupils.

The innovative project has been organised by the council's Energy Management Unit which has worked closely with the Nell Bank Centre and the education directorate's maintenance and surveyors.

The roof panels and equipment were jointly funded by Create, a charity which promotes energy efficiency, and the Queen's Silver Jubilee Charitable Trust.

The system works by sunlight falling on to the glass roof-mounted panels and heating cold water enclosed within them.

When the water is heated sufficiently, it is pumped into a hot water storage tank which then supplies the showers.

Councillor Latif Darr, chairman of the transportation, planning and design committee, said: "This is an excellent scheme which uses a renewable form of energy to provide something as essential as hot showers. This is another example of the excellent work that EMU has been doing in working with other agencies to secure grants."

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