Home Group to improve more than 900 North East homes

North-East based housing association Home Group has been successful in securing funding to retrofit 900 homes across the region.

The £7.3m Home Group has received from the second wave of the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund will mean significant savings for its customers. Then Newcastle-based organisation will use the funding from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero to increase Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) ratings at scale, especially those most in need.

As well as boosting EPC ratings the plan is to deliver works to improve thermal performance, while reducing carbon emissions and stabilising customer fuel bills. The scope of works to the homes will include installing external wall insulation, cavity wall and loft insulation top-ups, new energy efficient double-glazing, front and rear door replacements.

In addition, existing heating and hot water systems will be replaced with technology such as air source heat pumps, and solar PV with battery storage.

Monitoring equipment will also be installed to a number of different property types which will measure internal temperatures, relative humidity, carbon dioxide levels and help measure how successful the retrofit works have been in terms of reducing carbon and increasing thermal performance.

Home Group’s bid was as part of the Greener Futures Partnership. The partnership was successful in securing more than £40m funding to retrofit 5,600 homes with a total planned investment of over £90m.

The partnership is made up of some of the UK’s largest housing associations – Abri, Anchor, Home Group, Hyde Group and Sanctuary - with a joint turnover of £2.3bn, representing over 600,000 customers in 300,000 homes.

Will Gardner, executive director of Asset and Development at Home Group, said: “We’re delighted to have been successful once again. The works that we are doing to 90 homes with the funds from Wave 1 will have such a positive impact for our customers. To be able to have the same impact with 900 of our homes in the north east is fantastic.

“Greening our customers’ homes and communities is a key aim for us. With these funds, and our own significant investment, we will be able to do that.

“Working as part of the Greener Futures Partnership is also a big plus in that aim, as it will help us in terms increasing our procurement muscle, we’ll benefit from shared best practice and GFP research activity, as well as helping to improve customer engagement.”

By Mark Adair – Correspondent, Bdaily

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