“We are so far pleased with the system - our treasurer is particularly pleased. It was costing us £70 to £100 per weekend in gas, but three hours of electrical heating cost us only around £30. The saving is very significant.”
Christ Church New Mill - a Grade II listed Victorian church in the Holme Valley, West Yorkshire - replaced its ageing gas-fired heating system with a full infrared solution, as part of a wider Net Zero project that also included rooftop solar panels.
The church, which dates back to the nineteenth century and holds regular Sunday services as well as community events, faced a common challenge: a vast, draughty building where the old gas boiler had to be switched on the day before a service to achieve any meaningful warmth - at a cost of £70 to £100 per weekend.
Following consultation with ARC Thermal Solutions - who had previously supplied heaters for the church's gallery room in 2023 - the church appointed ARC to design and supply a complete infrared system. The project was awarded Church of England Demonstrator Church status, with a grant helping to fund the installation as part of the diocese's Net Zero 2030 programme.
Warmth felt by congregation within minutes of switching on
Estimated saving of £2,550 per year vs gas
10.38 tonnes of CO₂ saved annually
Discreet appearance - heaters blend with historic building interior
Installation Outcomes for Christ Church, New Mill
| BEFORE | AFTER |
|---|---|
| Ageing gas-fired boiler system | ETHERMA EXO Dark 2000 infrared heating (overhead) + Serenity under-pew heaters |
| £70–100 per weekend in gas | ~£30 for three hours at full unit rate |
| Building preheated from the previous day | Warmth felt within minutes - no pre-heating requiredvious day Warmth felt within minutes - no pre-heating required |
| Entire building heated regardless of use | Zoned by area - heat only where the congregation is seated |
| High CO₂ emissions from gas combustion | 10.38 tonnes of CO₂ saved per year |
The Challenge
The previous heating system consisted of a gas-fired boiler serving the main nave, with hot water pipes.
The system was old, expensive to run, and fundamentally unsuited to a building used primarily for just a few hours each week.
Gas boiler system
Serving the entire building
1,050 kWh per service
Energy used per Sunday (15 hrs × 70kW)
£70–100 every weekend
Running cost in gas alone
The church is used primarily on Sunday mornings, with occasional events during the week. Because the building is so large and draughty - with high ceilings, large windows, and stone walls - the gas system required heating to be switched on the previous day to achieve a rise of just 6 –10°C. This meant paying to heat an empty building overnight, every week.
“With the old gas system, we had to start heating the church the day before a service just to achieve a reasonable temperature - and we were paying £70 to £100 every weekend for the privilege.”
How a decision was made
Two companies were invited to review options and provide quotations:
A national heating provider
Provided a comparable quotation for infrared heating.
ARC Thermal Solutions
Recommended based on existing relationship (gallery heaters installed 2023). The appearance and specification of ARC's heaters were judged to be the better fit for the listed building interior.
The church chose ARC Thermal Solutions, citing the superior aesthetic fit of the heaters within the listed building interior, and ARC's proven track record in the building from the gallery installation two years earlier.
“We decided to take ARC's heaters because the appearance of their products would more suitably fit the church- and we had already seen their work in our gallery room.”
Key customer objectives
Understanding what Christ Church New Mill needed to achieve was central to how ARC designed and specified the heating solution.
Net Zero commitment
The church had applied for and received Church of England Demonstrator Church status, with a target of eliminating carbon from all its energy use as rapidly as possible.
Cost reduction
Weekend gas bills of £70 –100 were unsustainable. The church needed a solution that would deliver meaningful long-term savings.
Congregation comfort
Infrared provides immediate warmth to the people in the pews - not the air - solving the 'cold church' problem without hours of pre-heating.
Heritage compliance
As a Grade II listed building, any installation required faculty approval from the Diocese and sensitivity to the historic building fabric.
Why infrared heating was the right solution for Christ Church, New Mill
The building is used at specific times
infrared means no wasted energy pre-heating empty space.
Warmth
is felt within minutes of switching on, ensuring comfort before services begin.
Zoned control
allows individual areas (nave, chancel, side aisles) to be heated independently.
The heaters blend with the historic interior
black finish under dark balcony panelling, white finish elsewhere.
Solar PV on the roof
directly offsets the running cost, making the system increasingly sustainable over time.
Electric infrared
is compatible with renewable energy tariffs, supporting the church's Net Zero 2030 commitment.
Working through faculty and heritage approval
As a Grade II listed building, Christ Church New Mill required faculty approval from the Diocese before any changes to the heating system could be made. The planning application and submission to the Georgian Group also required careful attention to the visual impact of the installation.
ARC worked with the church throughout the design process, producing detailed layout drawings and specification documents for the faculty application. Key decisions that supported approval included selecting black-finish heaters for the nave (mounted under the dark balcony panelling where they are barely visible) and white-finish heaters where the beams are painted, ensuring the heaters complement rather than intrude on the historic interior.
The planning application emphasised that the installation had minimal impact on the appearance of the building, with the heaters visible only from a small number of external positions. Faculty 2024-104557 was granted on 7 July 2025.
“The staff at ARC Thermal Solutions were helpful at all stages - from the initial design recommendations through several modifications as our thinking evolved.”
Installation & Practicalities
ARC Thermal Solutions supplied all heaters and controllers. Installation was carried out by MJL Electrical, the church's trusted local electrician, with whom ARC worked closely throughout.
20 overhead heaters
EXO Dark 2000 - black and white finish across 5 zones in the nave
12 under-pew heaters
Serenity (KST080) installed beneath the choirstall pews
9 control zones
Power regulators grouped by area for flexible day-to-day use
The heater controllers are housed in a bespoke cabinet on the west nave wall, finished to match the surrounding paintwork and positioned close to the churchwarden's pew for easy operation during services.
“Although ARC would have installed the heaters themselves, they cooperated fully with our regular local electricians, which we very much appreciated.”
Controls & day to day use
The system uses nine Infresco power regulators to manage the 32 heaters across the church, grouped into zones that reflect how the building is actually used:
Zone 1 (4 heaters)
North side nave, nearest the chancel
Zone 2 (10 heaters)
Central nave, main congregation seating
Zone 3 & 4 (4+2 heaters)
Side naves
Zone 5 (12 under-pew heaters)
Choirstalls·
“The system is straightforward to operate - the controls are in a cabinet right next to the churchwarden's pew, so whoever is managing the service has easy access.”
Comfort and feedback
The congregation has responded positively. On the first occasion the full electric system was used, both the choir and the congregation reported being comfortable - even though the air temperature was around 10°C, cooler than would have been achieved with the old gas system.
This is infrared heating working exactly as it should: warming the people directly, not the air. Because radiant heat is absorbed by the body, congregants feel warmer than the ambient air temperature suggests.
"Although the air was colder than with the old gas system, the majority of the congregation were comfortable sitting in the pews at 80% power - and we know we can increase it further if needed."
Geoffrey Lockwood, Chair of the PCC, Christ Church New Mill
The heaters blend well visually with the historic interior. The black-finish EXO Dark heaters under the dark balcony panelling are virtually invisible in use, and the white-finish units on the painted beams complement the building fabric rather than intrude on it.
Running costs and sustainability
"It was costing us around £70 to £100 per weekend in gas. Three hours of electrical heating cost us only around £30 at the full unit rate - a very significant saving."
- Geoffrey Lockwood, Chair of the PCC, Christ Church New Mill
Estimated annual saving of £2,550 compared with the previous gas system
10.38 tonnes of CO₂ saved per year - equivalent to planting over 460 trees
57,750 kWh of energy saved annually
Projected payback period of 10.3 years (heaters and controllers)
Solar panels on the roof generated 3,899 kWh in the first five months (October 2025 – March 2026), further reducing running costs
The system supports the Church of England's Net Zero 2030 target
Net Zero & Demonstrator Church Status
Christ Church New Mill was awarded Church of England Demonstrator Church status as part of the Diocese's Net Zero programme - one of a select number of churches specifically chosen for funding to demonstrate how congregations can reduce their carbon footprint to zero.
The project was delivered in two stages. Stage 1 - the installation of a 17kW rooftop solar array, which was completed in August 2025 under faculty 2024-104557. Stage 2 - the replacement of the gas heating system with ARCAngel infrared, followed in October/November 2025. Both stages were required to be substantially complete by the end of 2025 as a condition of the Demonstrator Church grant.
The result is a church that is now largely powered by renewable electricity (generated on site) and heated by a system that uses energy only when and where it is needed.
Project Outcomes
Congregation comfortable from the first service
Estimated saving of £2,550 per year
10.38 tonnes CO₂ saved annually
Full faculty and Georgian Group approval achieved
Heaters blend discreetly with Grade II listed interior
Demonstrator Church status - supporting diocese Net Zero 2030
Reflections
“If your church is considering replacing its heating system, I would strongly recommend looking at infrared - particularly if you are in a listed building or have high energy bills. The process of working with ARC, from the initial design through to installation, was straightforward and well-supported at every stage.”
Infrared heaters begin warming the people and fabric of the building immediately on switch-on. At Christ Church New Mill, the system was switched on around 30 minutes before the congregation arrived - compared to the previous day with the old gas boiler.
Yes. Christ Church New Mill successfully obtained faculty approval and Georgian Group sign-off for the installation. ARC Thermal Solutions prepared the specification documentation and worked with the church through the approval process. The heaters are available in black and white finishes to suit different interior environments.
Yes - and the combination is particularly effective. Christ Church New Mill's solar array generated 3,899 kWh in just the first five months, directly offsetting the running cost of the infrared system.
Christ Church New Mill estimates annual savings of approximately £2,550 against their previous gas costs. The exact saving will depend on how often the building is used, the size of the space, and current energy tariffs. ARC can provide a detailed cost comparison for your church.
The system uses Etherma EXO Dark 2000 overhead heaters (in both black and white finish) for the nave, and ARCAngel Serenity under-pew heaters in the choirstalls. Control is via nine Infresco power regulators grouped into zones.
Want to read the full independent report by Christ Church New Mill?
The PCC completed a comprehensive review of the entire project, and have kindly shared it with us, as it is a large file, please get in touch, and we will happily share the full document with you.
A shorter version focussed around the infrared heating has been compiled below - but the full document is available on request.
Thank you for getting in touch!
We'll get back to you as soon as possible.