The History of the National Grid

With continual talk in the media about energy price rises and speculation about winter power cuts due to electricity shortages, Britain has come full circle since Prime Minster Stanley Baldwin promised cheap and plentiful electricity for all back in 1926.

Electricity has become as crucial to the modern world as sunlight and water have been since life on earth began. It’s more than 140 years since the British public first had electricity in their homes – and almost a century since the National Grid was launched.

© Lukasz Pajor / Shutterstock.com

Now, Britain seems to be at an energy crossroads, as demand is outstripping supply. Experts are looking into how we can continue to generate enough power, as the population grows and natural resources become scarce.

When did the UK first have electricity?

The electricity system in the UK was launched in 1881, when the first public generator was built in Godalming, Surrey. First used to light streets; initially, the nation’s electricity supply comprised a patchwork of small supply networks.

It was generated and supplied to businesses and householders at a variety of voltages and frequencies, by a mixture of municipal councils and independent private companies; by 1921, the UK had more than 480 authorised suppliers of electricity.

With no regulations in place, electricity was prohibitively expensive, and many ordinary people couldn’t afford it. The wide array of systems included some that were so expensive that keeping just five light bulbs working for one day cost the average person one week’s wages! Needless to say, only 6% of UK homes were connected.

Britain was lagging behind European countries such as France and Germany, where almost twice as many people were connected.

When was the National Grid launched?

The British government introduced Electricity Act 1926 to create a uniform national system governed by a central authority. At the time, Stanley Baldwin spoke of the benefits of having a regulated electricity supply network, with an affordable and abundant electricity supply, regardless of social status or where someone lived.

The new legislation established the National Grid, connecting the 122 most efficient UK power stations and run by the Central Electricity Board. Constructing the new electricity network was a major challenge, as it needed 4,000 miles of transmission lines and cables stretching to all parts of Britain.

The majority of the electricity supply would be carried by pylons. Installing the giant metal structures across the countryside was a decision not taken lightly. Renowned architect Sir Reginald Blomfield was commissioned to make them as attractive as possible. Their design was said to be inspired by ancient Egyptian architecture.

However, many people objected to the army of pylons advancing across the countryside and felt they didn’t fit in with the landscape. Despite objections, the new electricity system was finished by the mid-1930s. The National Grid provided a uniform voltage of 132 KV.

By the time World War II started in 1939, two-thirds of all British homes were connected to the National Grid. People loved electric lights, which came on with the flick of a switch.

Increase in electric appliances

The development of the National Grid progressed more quickly from the mid-20th century and electricity became an increasingly important part of everyone’s life. As more people bought electric appliances, more sockets were needed in homes.

By the mid-1950s, more than 50% of householders had sockets. The biggest boom in socket-fitting came when people started buying the latest labour-saving device: the electric iron. As more people and businesses were added to the National Grid, the demand grew rapidly.

When the power stations and transmission lines had been built, the population used them as much as possible. There were always peaks in the morning and evening, as people got ready to go out and then arrived home from work later.

Electricity boards were keen to promote the latest electric appliances, including cookers and immersion heaters, so electricity showrooms opened on every high street to entice consumers and persuade them to buy more appliances.

Electricity in industry

The National Grid didn’t just mean a boom in the use of electric gadgets for the home. Its biggest customers were the industrial businesses who had desperately wanted it in the first place.

Between the end of the second world war and the early 1970s, the manufacturing sector accounted for nearly 40% of Britain’s gross domestic product. A lot of the industries relied on production lines driven by electricity. The post-war boom in manufacturing was made possible only by the availability of electricity.

The National Grid had transformed living standards for most of the population, boosted industry and laid the foundations for today’s consumer society.

What is the future for electricity?

Today, there are few aspects of our life that aren’t dependent on electricity. Being attached to the National Grid is vital for just about everyone. Many of us work in an office full of computers, or in a factory with industrial equipment powered by electricity.

We take electricity for granted and the only time we realise its importance is when we’re without it due to a power cut. However, the National Grid is facing numerous challenges today, such as increasing demand and competition from other suppliers of renewable energy and power storage.

Power cuts

Britain had its first taste of power cuts in 1970, when electricity supply workers banned overtime and started working to rule. It took just eight hours for there to be a serious breakdown in the UK’s electricity supply. The following week, power cuts caused chaos. The army had to rush emergency generators to hospitals, as lives were at risk.

The country ground to a halt and within days, electricity workers were round the negotiating table – the normal supply was soon restored!

Today, coal generates 28% of Britain’s electricity and gas generates 45%. However, national reserves are dwindling and there are concerns that electricity shortages may once again lead to power cuts in the near future.

Nuclear power was meant to help, but Britain’s nuclear power stations are said to be reaching the end of their useful life. In the UK, we have some of the best wind reserves in Europe, while solar power is also on the increase. However, the experts can’t yet say with any certainty how much of the gap renewable energy sources can fill.

Almost a century on from Baldwin’s promise of cheap and plentiful electricity for everyone, we are having to consider how to keep on powering our electricity supply to cope with the ever-increasing demands of industry and consumerism.