To retrofit effectively we need to learn from each other
With the upcoming announcement on the successful bidders for Wave 2 of the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, there is probably no better time to be at the third annual Retrofit Challenge Summit on the 28th March produced by our sister publication Inside Housing.
We know retrofit is going to be one of the challenges of our time. At the heart of the wider net zero transition is the need in the UK to decarbonise heat, it is the hardest obstacle the country will need to overcome to deliver a successful transition. This is down to the scale of the intervention required. We will need low carbon heat in our homes, where we work, in public spaces and where we spend our leisure time. Exact numbers differ between different research points, but there is the understanding that between 27-29 million homes will need to undergo some kind of retrofit activity to become more energy efficient by 2050. In the social housing sector alone there is a portfolio of c5 million homes for which a majority will again need to undergo retrofit activity.
Retrofit is complex, not just from a technical and labour perspective, and it needs to involve, the resident. We should not lose sight what we are trying to achieve at the end of this is healthier homes, that are warmer with better ventilation that make a real positive impact on people’s lives.
This is why the summit is such an important event.
Across the day there is the opportunity to explore with, and learn from peers as we seek to answer the questions of how we retrofit UK homes at pace (because of the volume we have a lot to do before 2050), how we retrofit at scale (we are close if not in the place of where we have to retrofit one million properties a year every year to 2050) and how we get it right first time (low carbon technologies are understood but under developed) to avoid even more costly interventions later on down the line.
We understand that such a large set of works is going to put real challenge on the supply chain to deliver. At a number of our events, we always touch upon the issue of skills, and with retrofit we are looking towards the development of in some cases completely new skillsets. This is a sector that needs to grow quickly, continue to develop, and we are talking about the jobs of tomorrow. Retrofit is complex so we are going to need people working across several strands - data analysis, design, construction, and implementation as well as engagement and communication to name but a few. There is a need to profile to people interested not only the roles available but also the social value impact such work creates to make this an attractive and compelling proposition.
And we cannot avoid the fact that this is going to be a costly venture. For social housing alone valuations north of £100 billion have been shared as the total cost of retrofitting the current social housing portfolio. So how do we pay for this? What will be the element and mix of public and private funding? What funding mechanisms are there for users to consider? These topics and others including lessons learnt from Wave 1 of the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund will be discussed on the day.
The essence of the programme as it has been designed is to allow people to learn from others involved in the delivery of retrofit across all of its levels. There is nothing more powerful than peer-to-peer learning from people facing the same challenges and who have experience of overcoming some of the challenges commonly faced.
However, we should not get away from the role of the resident right at the heart of the retrofit process. We recently ran a viewpoint from Doina Caniparu of Wates Living Space who spoke about the importance of early resident engagement in successful retrofit programmes arguing that engagement needs to start long before the programme of works begins. Retrofit has a direct impact on people’s lives and their homes, and we need to understand the emotional attachment that comes with that.
Therefore, at the summit we will be hearing from residents as part of the panel sessions as we look to marry the thematic engagement with the practical reality of the delivery of retrofit and how we can best learn from residents to make this a successful venture.
The day will finish with a keynote speech from property expert, broadcaster, and writer Kunle Barker, who is also an ambassador in 2023 for us here at Unlock Net Zero. In this session, Kunle will look to bring together some of the key themes that will be covered during the day alongside reinforcing how if we are to deliver the net zero transition, the country will need to solve the problem of energy efficiency in our housing stock.
So, if you have not registered already do join us at the third annual Retrofit Challenge Summit, the sector’s leading one-day event. Bringing together over 500 sector leaders, it is an unmissable opportunity to collaborate and hear solutions from government, experts, landlords, tenants, and the supply chain.
Find out more and book your delegate pass
Andy Cameron-Smith is Content & editorial director of Unlock Net Zero
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