With their new solar panel energy ‘bank’, St John’s, Campsie is paving the way for churches looking to save money on their electricity bills.

This development is a first for the Sydney Diocese, but Greg Ellem, head of the Anglican Church Property Trust, says that given the financial and environmental benefits of the solar panels, the Property Trust commends other parishes following Campsie's lead in seeking grant assistance.

The panels, worth $20,500, were installed at no cost to the church. A rebate program from the Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts covered approximately 50 percent of the costs.

Two anonymous members of the congregation donated the remaining amount.

Assistant Minister, the Rev Omar Anheluk, says installing the solar panels is a small part of the congregation's efforts to be upstanding members of their community.

"This is just another creative way of being responsible," Mr Anheluk says. "We need to be good stewards of this world God's given us, and this is one way of doing that."

Mr Ellem adds that "there seems to be a groundswell of broad support amongst parishes to care for our environment and the initiative is totally consistent with recent Synod resolutions about climate change".

Mr Anheluk also sees other benefits for the church in using this new source of energy. "[The panels] will produce about a quarter of our electricity and so reduce our bill by about 25 percent," he admits.

Gwen Wade, an environmentally conscious churchgoer, took the initiative in researching the rebate program and completing the 13-page application form.

"Science seems to indicate that greenhouse gases are a significant and urgent problem," Ms Wade says. "I wanted to do what I could to help the situation rather than make it worse."

The photo-voltaic solar panels produce no carbon emissions and are a renewable energy source.

The panels operate by converting energy from the sun into 240V electricity, which is then used in appliances. Any excess electricity produced is sent back to the main grid and used by others, eliminating wastage.