Industry leaders have approached the government with a new ‘national retrofit strategy’ that could keep the UK on track to meet its targets to reduce carbon emissions1.
A spokesperson from the Construction Leadership Council said, “Wide-scale domestic retrofit is essential to the Net Zero agenda, and backing a long-term strategy will help position the UK as global market leader in the low carbon economy ahead.”
Retrofit to save energy, save money – and save our planet
Retrofitting involves insulating homes and replacing old fashioned heating systems with low carbon solutions such as ground source heat pumps.
The Construction Leadership Council strategy estimates its proposal for renovating energy inefficient homes would save people more than £400 a year on their energy bills. It would also help improve the health of those in fuel poverty.
Their report recommends refurbishing 850,000 homes by 2024. But a long-term retrofit strategy to decarbonise UK homes and businesses could reduce national energy costs by a huge £7.5bn a year, and cut carbon emissions by 20%2.
Homes emit 20% of carbon dioxide emissions in the UK
Renovating draughty homes to get them up to low carbon standards is a government priority, as Britain’s homes are among the most inefficient in Europe.
It’s alarming when you realise that UK homes are responsible for nearly a fifth of the UK’s entire carbon emissions. If we are serious about meeting Net Zero targets, the national policy has to focus on installing insulation and replacing inefficient heating systems.
The government recently committed over £560m to decarbonise UK housing3. Business and Energy Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said, “The £562m package will be shared by 300 Local Authorities across England and Scotland that will fund upgrades to some of the nation’s least energy efficient and fuel-poor homes.”
He added, “We are ensuring households across the country enjoy warmer homes that are cheaper to heat with fewer emissions – all while creating new work for local plumbers, builders and tradespeople.”
The funding will provide 50,000 households with energy efficiency solutions such as insulation and replacing old gas boilers.
Mr Kwarteng continued, “This is an initial down payment on the UK Government’s plan to invest over £9bn into eradicating fuel poverty, improving the lives and homes of low-income households. This is yet another important step we are taking to eliminate our contribution to climate change and build back greener from the pandemic.”
If you think your home could benefit from insulation we offer a no-obligation professional home energy survey.
Contact us to find out more about the benefits of insulating your home. You can also ask us about government-backed ECO funding or any Local Authority grants available in your area. To speak to our member of our team, call 0800 526 023.
< Back to News Stories
