Plug-In Solar, Community Power, and a Full House: Our Latest Social Evening (2 Sep 2026)
Wednesday 2 September’s TTMK Social Evening was one of our busiest yet, and the topic more than lived up to its billing. With plug-in solar having become legal to buy and self-install across Great Britain on 27 August, the timing couldn’t have been better.
A huge thank you to Matt Hinton from Depth of Light, who gave up his evening to talk us through what the new rules actually mean. Matt supports MK Community Energy as an independent volunteer, offering his technical expertise with no sales pitch attached, which showed in how straight-talking and practical his talk was.
Matt’s key takeaways on plug-in solar:
- Check the approved list, every time. Any plug-in kit must be on the ENA type test register before it can legally be self-installed. As of late August, only 20 products from five manufacturers had made the cut, so check on the day you buy, not the day you decide you want one.
- Look at your fuse board first. Modern consumer units (switches you can flick back on) are generally fine. Older fuse boards may need a professional check before you plug anything in.
- Straight into a wall socket, nothing else. No extension leads, four-way adaptors or cable reels, and only one device per household.
- Notify your network operator. It’s a ten-minute online form, and you’re telling them, not asking — but it’s a legal requirement.
- Batteries and second-hand kits aren’t covered. If it’s not the complete, tested kit as approved, it’s not legal to self-install.
- Realistically: kits cost £400-£1,000, save £70-£150 a year depending on aspect and shading, with a 4-7 year payback.
The floor then opened up, and the questions kept coming. Thank you to everyone who brought their own experiences, scepticism, and know-how to the discussion. That’s exactly what these evenings are for.
We were also delighted to welcome Caroline Saunders, chair of MK Climate Action Network, who introduced an idea close to her work with MK Community Energy: bringing a “Power Station“-style, people-powered movement to Milton Keynes, to help residents across Great Linford, Blakelands and Giffard Park get solar onto their roofs collectively. Still early days, but a genuinely exciting one to watch.
Both presentations are available to download below. If you’d like to learn more about any of this, get in touch.
Download: Matt’s plug-in solar guide (PPTX)
Download: Caroline’s Power Station presentation (PPTX)
Credit: Feature image of balcony solar. Source: https://www.theguardian.com/money/2026/jul/23/uk-households-free-install-plug-in-balcony-solar-panels