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Heat pumps alone will not make homes warmer or bills lower

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David Lennan , Chairman,   National Warm Homes Council The government has just revealed new updates to its Warm Homes Plan to improve the energy efficiency of homes in the UK. At the heart of these plans is support for people switching to heat pumps. But with rising energy prices and fuel poverty increasing across Britain, will electrification be the most affordable and scalable solution to Britain’s cold homes crisis? Millions of families continue to live in heat-leaking and expensive-to-heat homes, where they struggle with cost-of-living pressures. Friends of the Earth claims that nearly 10 million people in the UK are living in cold, damp and poorly insulated houses. The poorest households could be paying up to £600 more a year simply to heat their homes. High energy bills continue to make things worse, with energy prices likely to remain high and volatile for a long time. The government’s approach to tackling these challenges was outlined last week. The next steps of the Warm H...
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Reducing VAT for all retrofit improvements would boost green growth

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David Lennan , Chairman,   National Warm Homes Council The next Budget on 30 October marks a real opportunity to give a boost to green growth that could help address the heat-leaking homes blighting the lives of millions of low-income households and families across Britain. But how can the Chancellor use the forthcoming budget to support homeowners to lower their emissions and bills while creating more jobs and bolstering the UK economy?  With the energy price cap rising by 10% from next month, there is an increasing need to support families with home decarbonisation and offering more affordable heating options. However, the costs of retrofitting are becoming unaffordable for too many. The Federation of Master Builders claims that VAT costs put off about four million households annually from making any energy-efficiency changes to their homes.  Currently, VAT relief for energy-saving materials is limited to a very prescriptive list of low-carbon technologies, barely updat...
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The government's Warm Homes Plan must be a political priority

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David Lennan , Chairman,   National Warm Homes Council The Labour government has pledged to upgrade five million homes in the next parliament to cut bills for families as part of its Warm Homes Plan. But how does the government go about delivering it?  The UK has the least insulated and energy-efficient homes in Western Europe. For too long, this has been causing harm to residents across Britain, millions of whom are experiencing fuel poverty and struggling to pay sky-high energy bills.  The government's Warm Homes Plan to tackle these issues is laudable. Still, the retrofit industry will find it incredibly challenging to scale up quickly to achieve the target of upgrading millions of homes. Bridging this gap means detailed answers from new ministers to key questions, including: • How does the government plan to recruit and train the thousands of workers needed to fix our homes?  • How will it support the industry to source materials, free up supply chains and ge...
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Political leaders must seize the moment for change to overhaul Britain’s energy-inefficient homes

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David Lennan , Chairman,   National Warm Homes Council The three main political parties published their general election manifestos last week. But how far do these plans go to address the urgent need to overhaul our energy-inefficient housing stock and support homeowners to future-proof their homes and drive down bills?  The dire situation of heat-leaking and expensive-to-heat homes is being felt by millions of families and low-income households up and down the country. The UK has the worst-insulated houses in Europe. Citizen Advice claims that over half of all homes across Great Britain are still energy inefficient. Though 25% of a home’s heat is typically lost through an uninsulated roof, only 8 million lofts, or nearly a third of all lofts in the UK, have less than half the required levels of insulation. Sky-high energy bills continue to make things worse. Ofgem recently confirmed that energy prices are still significantly higher than before and will remain high and volatil...
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Adopting energy-saving technology could help deliver warmer homes and lower bills

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By   David Lennan , Chairman,   National Warm Homes Council Progress in taking meaningful action to tackle Britain’s cold homes, improve home energy efficiency and address heat-leaking housing stock has over the last decade been slow. High energy bills and poorly insulated properties adversely affect the most vulnerable in society. But how can we deliver warmer homes and support low-income households with lowering bills and emissions?  According to Friends of the Earth, one-third of all households in the UK, or 9.6 million people, are living in cold, damp and poorly insulated homes. Consequently, the poorest households could be paying up to £500 more a year on their energy bills.  A key reason for this is that the fabric of our houses is of substandard quality. The UK has the oldest and least energy-efficient homes in Europe. Our homes lose heat up to three times faster than our European neighbours.  YouGov polling points to one in four people rating their home ...
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Building regulations must mandate insulation protection to ensure homes are fit for the future

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By   David Lennan , Chairman,   National Warm Homes Council The government’s  consultation  on the Future Homes and Buildings Standard is a significant opportunity to ensure all new homes built from 2025 produce up to 80% less carbon emissions than currently, and for the UK to reach net zero by 2050.  The proposed new Standard complements further amendments to Part F and Part L of the Building Regulations and aims to decarbonise new homes by improving heating and hot water systems and reducing heat waste – supporting an overall drive for homes that are better for the environment and future-ready. Once legislation is passed (planned for 2025), all new homes must be built according to the Standard.   Neither the importance of this change nor the context can be overstated. It is widely accepted that the UK has the oldest and least energy-efficient housing in Europe. For example, 25% of a home’s heat is typically lost through an uninsulated roof, yet 8 million ...
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Failure to account for unprotected insulation degradation could undermine new Home Energy Model

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By   David Lennan , Chairman,   National Warm Homes Council The government’s consultation on its new online calculation method to accurately assess the energy use and energy efficiency of homes in the UK, replacing the Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP), closed on 27 March and will input into changes in Buildings Regulations planned for 2025. The draft consultation plans are a positive step in the right direction. But does the new Home Energy Model (HEM), which will replace SAP, go far enough in ensuring assessments are robust and fit for the future?   Changing how we understand and manage home energy efficiency and consumption is on the critical path to net zero and increased levels of home decarbonisation. People want to live in modern homes genuinely future-ready that minimise environmental and social impacts. Reform of SAP has been long overdue, with the industry seeking changes for the last decade, but the regulatory environment has barely moved. That is why the co...
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