Social Landlords Urged to Apply for Share of £685,000 Fund to Install Energy Efficiency Measures in South West Social Housing

Ready for Retrofit is inviting social landlords from across the South West to apply for funding to install energy efficiency and micro generation retrofit measures in social housing.  

The organisation is releasing funds of £685,000 to support the installation of schemes that will improve the energy efficiency of social housing as well as supporting the local supply chain for such services.

Social housing providers across the South West (apart from Cornwall) have until 19th March 2014 to apply for funds, and all schemes must be able to complete works by 31st October 2014.

All applications will be assessed according to Ready for Retrofit’s funding criteria:  match funding is not essential, but applications that have such funding are more likely to be successful.  Ideally, schemes should be ready to start from early May, and would be unlikely to happen without this funding.

The £8 million Ready for Retrofit scheme, part funded by the European Regional Development Fund and ledby the Energy Saving Trust, enables social landlords across the South West to apply for funding to retrospectively fit renewable heat and electricity measures as well as improve energy efficiency in their homes.

Jon Rattenbury, Ready for Retrofit Manager said: “Retrofitting energy efficiency measures is essential to improve the environmental efficiency of social housing.  Measures installed with funding from Ready for Retrofit so far include external wall insulation, air source heat pumps, mechanical heat recovery ventilation, heating upgrades, floor insulation and efficient glazing and doors.”

He added, “As well as reducing costs for tenants and lowering the community carbon footprint, we also want to support local businesses that supply these services. The South West has such a strong reputation for renewable energy development that we see efficiency, retrofit and micro-generation as a natural part of this burgeoning sector.”

One success story is the Magna Housing Association, which has over 9,000 homes, mostly in Devon, Dorset and parts of Somerset.

Last autumn, Magna completed work on one project benefitting 40 tenants. The housing association applied for funding to replace existing night storage heating in properties that were mainly let to elderly tenants.  Replacement of the expensive and inefficient night storage heating with air source heat pumps was a success: tenants were keen and the installation went well.

One tenant, Victor Miles, who has lived in his bungalow for 14 years, described the new heating system:  “My heating is now perfection.  It comes on exactly when I need it in the mornings and evenings and is very easy to control.  My electricity bill so far is way down: I’m saving £23 per month, which on a small pension is fantastic.”

To find out more about community funding and information on how to apply, please contact readyforretrofit@est.org.uk or visit http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/Organisations/Government-and-local-programmes/Programmes-we-deliver/Ready-for-Retrofit/Getting-Ready-for-Retrofit-funding   

For more information, please contact Julie Everett at Coast Communications on 01752 847135/ 07866 002635 or email julie@coastmarcoms.co.uk

For more information on Ready for Retrofit please visit www.energysavingtrust.org.uk.

Ready for Retrofit

Ready for Retrofit is a three-year project offering a new funding opportunity for social landlords in the south west of England (except Cornwall) to improve the energy efficiency of their existing stock. The aim of the project is to grow the local supply chain for low carbon building retrofit by stimulating demand and supporting local SME businesses, in order to create a sustainable domestic energy efficiency and micro-generation sector. We are also helping to grow the market locally by working with local authorities and community groups.

ERDF

The Ready for Retrofit project is part financed by the SW Competitiveness European Regional Development Fund Programme 2007 to 2013. The Department for Communities and Local Government is the managing authority for the European Regional Development Fund Programme, which is one of the funds established by the European Commission to help local areas stimulate their economic development by investing in projects which will support local businesses and create jobs. For more information visit http://www.communities.gov.uk/erdf

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