Joint project helps tenants save hundreds on bills
A council project to make rented homes in Tonbridge and Malling more energy efficient and cut carbon emissions has won top honours at the Kent Housing Group Excellence Awards.
The joint project run by Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council, Clarion Housing Group and Fenland District Council in Cambridgeshire saw 60 properties in the borough fitted with a range of improvements, including uprated insulation, energy efficient windows and solar panels.
As a result of the improvements, it’s expected that tenants will save around £440 a year on heating and hot water bills while also seeing their carbon emissions cut by approximately 70 per cent.
The £9m project formed part of the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF) demonstrator, run by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. A key aim was to prove what is possible in terms of reducing the costs of retrofitting improvements in some of the least energy efficient homes. Clarion Housing Group estimates that applying the same approach to half of the UK’s social housing stock requiring improvement could generate saving of £15bn for the sector as a whole.
The award judges said: ‘This project was a big, bold, leap into new territory and created learning that will inform the journey to net zero across the country. It gives tenants homes that will use significantly less energy – so important when facing the cost of living crisis.’
The council was also highly commended in a second category for its work to ensure privately rented properties are meeting the latest regulations on energy efficiency. New rules require landlords to ensure any property being rented out has an energy efficiency rating of at least band E. Tonbridge and Malling’s housing team worked to ensure compliance with the regulations and supported landlords seeking to improve the energy efficiency of their properties.
Cllr Kim Tanner, the council’s cabinet member for housing, said: ‘It’s great to see the work of our housing team recognised at these awards. Social housing providers face huge challenges in tackling poorly insulated homes and this pioneering work will pave the way for big improvements that will both save people money and deliver major environmental benefits in terms of reduced carbon emissions.’
Paul Norman, head of asset management at Clarion Housing Group, said: ‘We are thrilled to be recognised for our work with council and industry partners alike in making energy efficiency upgrades to 60 of our homes in the borough. This project is an incredibly valuable testing ground for our wider drive to decarbonise our stock across the country, and winning this award is testament to the hard work and creativity of everyone involved to date.’