Wates delivers UK energy saving pilot for London's social homes

12 November, 2010

Social housing across London is to be remodelled with new energy saving technology as part of a national initiative.

Affordable housing contractor, Wates Living Space, has been appointed by the Technology Strategy Board (TSB) as part of a consortium, to deliver two projects for Peabody as part of the Retrofit for the Future pilot schemes.

The government-backed Retrofit for the Future programme will see around 90 social housing units across the UK retrofitted with new, innovative, technologies, demonstrating how our homes can be made more energy efficient while reducing their CO2 emissions.

Paul Davies, Sustainable Technologies Manager for Wates, said: “Whilst we have, as an industry, been focussing on increasing energy efficiency standards applicable to new housing, currently little is being done to improve the efficiency of the 26 million existing homes we have. These projects will test how some of the new techniques and technologies can be applied to the homes we currently use.”

“We need to find a way to retrofit these new technologies into older homes to ensure we have an opportunity to significantly reduce the UK’s carbon footprint.”

Nic Wedlake, Peabody Sustainability Manager, said: “We’re excited to be involved in Retrofit for the Future, the first initiative of its kind in the UK. Working with Wates, we’re developing complete design solutions for existing homes that will dramatically improve their energy efficiency. This is vital to meeting the government’s target of reducing the UK’s carbon emissions by 80 per cent by 2050.”

Wates will work with Peabody to install ultra-efficient insulation, triple glazing and a prototype heating system into a Victorian property in Shaftesbury Park, Battersea, in order to reduce energy consumption.

The other TSB pilot scheme will see Wates and Peabody install a communal heating and solar thermal system into a row of terraced homes in Haringey.  This new heating system aims to significantly improve upon the efficiency of the residents’ existing individual heating systems, saving hundreds of pounds on household bills every year.

David Bott, Director of Innovation Programmes for the Technology Strategy Board, explained: "At least 60% of the houses UK residents will live in by 2050 have already been built; so it is critical that we look at ways to dramatically improve the environmental performance and impact of our existing housing stock. 

“Retrofit for the Future provides the testbed we need to ensure the implementation of long-term solutions.  This initiative has seen the retrofit market come together, with social landlords, local councils, architects and other specialist suppliers, developing a range of high performance and cost effective prototype solutions."

Each of the retrofit projects will act as a different type of demonstrator house which will be monitored by the Energy Saving Trust for a minimum of two years and assessed for potential large scale implementation in the UK’s existing social housing stock.

The data collected from each of the retrofitted houses, including internal and external temperature, humidity and CO2 levels, will be assimilated and available to researchers, social landlords and energy companies to ensure that the most cost-effective technologies are employed in future retrofits.

Paul Davies added: “The Retrofit for the Future pilot will have massive implications for the future of social and private housing. It’s a very exciting time to be involved.”

To download this press release as a pdf click here

Categories: influencing, affordable housing, london & south east

Tags: Nic Wedlake, Paul Davies, Peabody Housing, Sustainable