Salix funding for schools in 2026

What Salix is

Salix Finance administers public-sector decarbonisation funding on behalf of government — the UK government for schemes in England, and the Scottish and Welsh governments for schemes in Scotland and Wales. It is the name on the paperwork rather than the source of the money, and which schemes it runs depends entirely on the nation you are in. That is why a sentence that was true of England years ago can be false today, and still be copied from website to website.

England: grant schemes only in 2026

Salix’s own England page lists three kinds of scheme, and none of them is a loan a school can apply for:

Why so many pages still say “Salix loan”

Salix-administered loans for public-sector energy efficiency have existed in England before, and a great deal of school solar copy was written as if an interest-free, savings-repaid “Salix Decarbonisation Loan” were still the standard route for state schools. This site made that mistake too, on many pages, until we corrected it in October 2026. If an installer’s proposal assumes a Salix loan for an English school, ask them to show you the scheme on Salix’s website before you rely on it.

Scotland: zero-interest public-sector loans

Scotland is where Salix still lends. Two schemes run for the Scottish Government in 2026 to 2027:

• The Scottish Public Sector Energy Efficiency Loan Scheme offers zero-interest loans to the public sector, for projects with a payback of up to 12 years and a cost-effectiveness limit of £305 per tonne of carbon saved.
• The Scotland Recycling Fund lends at 0%, matched by the public body, again with up to a 12-year payback — and lists schools, through their local authority or governing body, among eligible applicants.

In practice a Scottish council usually applies for its schools as part of its estate programme, so the first conversation is with the council’s energy or estates team. See our page on solar panels for schools in Scotland for the planning and grid side.

Wales: the Wales Funding Programme

In Wales, Salix runs the Wales Funding Programme for the Welsh Government. It lends to public bodies, including the local authorities that maintain most Welsh schools, at a fixed rate set at the government borrowing rate — 2.45% when last updated on 10 September 2026 — with applications for the current round due by 6 November 2026. Its Invest to Save strand is interest-free, but only for bodies without borrowing powers. See solar panels for schools in Wales.

Northern Ireland

Salix’s published schemes cover England, Scotland and Wales. Schools in Northern Ireland should look to the Education Authority and the Department of Education (NI) instead; our Northern Ireland page sets out what we know.

What English schools can use instead

• The school’s or trust’s own capital — devolved formula capital, reserves or a condition budget. It usually gives the best return over the life of the panels; see the school solar cost guide.
• A Condition Improvement Fund bid — for stand-alone academies, trusts with fewer than five schools or fewer than 3,000 pupils, qualifying voluntary aided schools and sixth-form colleges, built on genuine condition need such as a failing roof. See whether a CIF bid can pay for school solar.
• A power purchase agreement — no upfront cost, but the school buys the electricity, and from 15 July 2026 the DfE’s PPA and land-lease templates are mandatory. See PPAs and community energy for schools.
• Great British Energy — free to the school, but only if government selects it; see Great British Energy solar for schools.