SolarSense Founder Stephen Barrett Honoured with Lifetime Achievement Award at Solar & Storage Live 2025
SolarSense is proud to announce that its Chairman and Founder, Stephen Barrett, has been recognised with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the prestigious Solar & Storage Live Awards 2025.
With over 30 years of unwavering dedication to sustainability, Stephen has played a pivotal role in accelerating the adoption of clean energy technologies across the UK and internationally. As the founder of SolarSense, he has championed the transition to a low-carbon future, delivering transformative projects across solar PV, solar thermal, heat pumps, battery storage, and solar carports. These innovative renewable energy systems have continuously set new benchmarks for environmental performance – helping businesses, communities, and charities to cut carbon, reduce costs, and build long-term resilience in the transition to Net Zero.
Stephen’s career began as a heating engineer, working hands-on with some of the earliest solar thermal systems, an experience that shaped his lifelong vision for clean energy. In 2000, he founded SolarSense, growing the business from a small office in Saltford into one of the UK’s leading renewable energy specialists. Today, SolarSense is recognised as one of the country’s most trusted solar and storage contractors, employing more than 40 people, creating skilled sustainability-focused careers, and driving progress towards national net zero targets. Under Stephen’s leadership, the company has achieved a number of UK firsts, including Europe’s first zero-carbon school, the UK’s first large-scale solar roof on a working farm at the Glastonbury Festival site, and Bristol’s first community-owned solar park.
As one of the UK’s first renewable energy contractors to achieve B Corp certification, SolarSense is independently recognised for meeting the highest standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability. Combined with its transition to an Employee Ownership Trust, the company has built a resilient, values-led culture that ensures Stephen’s vision continues long into the future.
The company’s impact has also been recognised nationally, winning more than 20 industry awards under Stephen’s leadership. Highlights include the UK’s Best Clean Energy Scheme award for SolarSense’s pioneering project with Avon Fire & Rescue Service – a scheme later highlighted by the Cabinet Office in the run-up to COP26 as an example of public sector climate leadership. Trusted by leading clients such as The Crown Estate, Bristol Airport, and apetito, SolarSense has consistently delivered projects that combine technical excellence with environmental and social value.
Beyond business success, Stephen has dedicated much of his career to giving back. Each year, SolarSense donates time, expertise, and equipment to charities across the UK and globally. Over the past three decades, Stephen has led numerous international initiatives to deliver solar-powered systems in remote communities, including:
India (2010): At the Bishop Bexel Orphanage, Stephen and his team installed a solar PV system with internal lighting, creating a safer and more comfortable environment for the children. The installation reduced reliance on an intermittent grid supply and helped lower ongoing energy costs.
Senegal (2011): Stephen and a small team travelled to southern Senegal to install off-grid solar lighting across 10 remote villages. These systems provided essential power for rural medical clinics, significantly improving healthcare access and safety in areas without reliable electricity.
Ethiopia (2012): At the Beso Medical Centre, the team installed a solar-powered vaccination fridge enabling the safe storage of life-saving vaccines in a region where power outages are frequent. This system strengthened healthcare delivery and continues to have a lasting impact on local public health.
Ukraine (2025): SolarSense partnered with its client AUMA Actuators to donate more than 400 solar panels for farms and homesteads in rural Ukraine. These systems provide vital energy to support food production, disabled veterans, and families affected by the war, helping communities remain resilient despite targeted attacks on national energy infrastructure.
While these international projects showcase Stephen’s global commitment to harnessing clean energy for social good, his ethos of giving back has been equally evident much closer to home. Across the UK, he has ensured that SolarSense’s expertise benefits charities and community organisations, helping them to continue delivering their vital services during challenging financial climates. Over the years, Stephen and the company have supported dozens of organisations, including The Rainbow Centre, which supports children with life-threatening illnesses, and The Brightwell Centre, which provides therapy for people living with MS and other neurological conditions. Most recently, SolarSense partnered with apetito, one of the UK’s leading food producers, to donate and install more than 150 reused solar panels at Paul’s Place, a charity dedicated to enhancing the lives of physically disabled adults. The project provides the charity with long-term energy savings, reduces its environmental footprint, and ensures more of its resources can be directed towards supporting the people who rely on its services every day.
SolarSense also partners with Rainforest Concern to help protect some of the world’s most biodiverse – yet most threatened ecosystems. For every square metre of solar panels installed, the company sponsors the protection of ten times that area of rainforest, directly supporting frontline conservation projects. This long-term commitment has already safeguarded thousands of hectares of critical habitat, protecting endangered species while supporting indigenous communities who act as guardians of the forest. The partnership reflects Stephen’s belief that climate action must extend beyond energy generation to the preservation of natural capital, ensuring that SolarSense’s growth has a positive environmental legacy far beyond the UK.
As Stephen retires, this award stands as a tribute to more than three decades of innovation, leadership, and unwavering commitment to sustainability. His legacy is a values-led business that will continue to thrive as a trusted partner for organisations across the UK, while inspiring the next generation of clean energy leaders.
