REPORT: Warmer Homes (2015)

Warmer Homes Final Report

Table of Contents 1.

2.

Executive Summary ......................................................................................................... 4 Background .................................................................................................................... 4 2.1 Fuel Poverty ............................................................................................................. 4 2.2 About the project ..................................................................................................... 5 2.3 Why Brent? .............................................................................................................. 5 2.4 Community Partner .................................................................................................. 5 3. Aim of the Project ........................................................................................................... 5 3.1 Aim and project plan ................................................................................................ 6 3.2 Theory of Change .................................................................................................... 6 4. Results & Outcomes ........................................................................................................ 8 4.1 Headline results........................................................................................................ 8 4.2 Project Outcomes ..................................................................................................... 9 5. Conclusions and Recommendations ............................................................................... 12 5.1 Conclusions ........................................................................................................... 12 5.2 Recommendations.................................................................................................. 13 6. Project spending............................................................................................................ 14 7. Appendix ...................................................................................................................... 15

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Summary of project

London Sustainability Exchange (LSx) received £9,994 funding from UK Power Networks to deliver ‘Warmer Homes’, a fuel poverty, retrofit programme in the London Borough of Brent with the Community Health Action Trust (CHAT) 18 Champions trained to delivered simple retrofits and energy saving advice

The total savings is estimated to be £22,224 per year, that’s £104 per household

Low-tech retrofits installed in households and increased understanding of energy saving behaviours worked to combat fuel poverty

The equivalent of 67.9 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year were saved through the retrofits and householder pledges

Quote from William:

CHAT worked with LSX to introduce and support our clients in efficient water and energy consumption to support green environment. A project which is helping us all to save energy, keep the environment green and above all save us money. Our volunteers and the community love this project and we look forward to sharing it with as many people as we can from now on as this is a project which needs to be embraced by all".

Quote from householder:

“I can see improvements on how I spend on power”

Quote from householder:

“I am spreading the news about it [my pledge] as it’s really helping me save energy” 3

1. Executive Summary Fuel Poverty is of increasing concern in London which, according to the 2012 DECC report, has been found to impact over between 6% and 15% of London's households (DECC 2012). With both the most recent DECC and EIA projections suggesting a fuel price increase in the near future (EIA 2015, DECC 2014) the most deprived areas and vulnerable individuals will be disproportionately affected. The choice between heating and eating has unfortunately become commonplace.

London Sustainability Exchange (LSx) worked with local group Community Health Action Trust (CHAT) to help tackle fuel poverty and reduce energy bills of vulnerable householders in the London Borough of Brent. 11.6% of households in the Brent estimated to be in fuel poverty, it is the third most affected London borough.

Key findings and Results    

167 participants (85%) reported improved thermal comfort in their home Total carbon savings of approximately 67.9 tonnes/yr Total financial savings of approximately £22,000 /yr Participants took on more sustainable habits as a result of this project.

Conclusions & Recommendations  

 

Utilising & up-skilling “front-line workers” is extremely effective for helping networks of vulnerable people tackle fuel poverty.

The activation of similar front-line workers in other formal and informal networks and organisations would provide significant support to vulnerable and fuel-poor householders across the country.

“Enablers” enable and encourage behaviour change.

“Enablers” should be made available for fuel-poor and vulnerable household to both enable and encourage the reduction of fuel-bills; these can be delivered through a network of trusted front-line workers

2. Background London Sustainability Exchange (LSx) worked with Community Health Action Trust (CHAT) based in the London Borough of Brent to help tackle fuel poverty and reduce energy bills of vulnerable householders.

2.1 Fuel Poverty Fuel Poverty is an increasing concern in London which, according to the 2012 DECC report, has been found to impact over between 6% and 15% of London's households (DECC 2012). With both the most recent DECC and EIA projections suggesting a fuel price increase in the near future (EIA 2015, DECC 2014) the most deprived areas and vulnerable individuals will be disproportionately affected. The choice between heating and eating has unfortunately become commonplace.

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2.2 About the project This project sought to tackle fuel poverty in one of London’s most deprived areas, targeting vulnerable householders with trusted messengers who installed simple retrofits, gave energy efficiency advice and encouraged households to take up pledges.

2.3 Why Brent?

We choose to work in the London Borough Brent, because of the high incidence of fuel poverty, with 11.6% of households in Brent estimated to be in fuel poverty, it is the third most affected London borough.

2.4 Community Partner We worked with the Community Health Action Trust (CHAT) in the London Borough of Brent to deliver this project. CHAT was chosen as ideal delivery partner for this project due to its connection with some of the most vulnerable and fuel poor households in London.

About: Community Health Action Trust (CHAT) Community Health Action Trust (CHAT) is a global/African humanitarian non-profit organisation dedicated to saving lives and relieving suffering in communities through health care training, relief and development programmes. It is a voluntary, non-political, non-sectarian organisation based in the London Borough of Brent.

CHAT supports a number of Health Champions who provide health care for African’s living with HIV and Aids in Brent. www.chatrust.com

"CHAT worked with LSX to introduce and support our clients in efficient water and energy consumption to support green environment. A project which is helping us all to save energy, keep the environment green and above all save us money. Our volunteers and the community love this project and we look forward to of sharing with as many people as we can from now on as 3. Aim the itProject this is a project which needs to be embraced by all". - William Gemegah, Executive Director, Community Health Action Trust

London Sustainability Exchange received funding of £9,994 from UK Power Networks as part of the Power of Giving fund to deliver the Warmer Homes project which ran from February 2015 – November 2015. The project took a volunteer led-approach to tackle fuel poverty by: • • •

Training champions to engage vulnerable householders Enabling energy efficiency through the installation of retrofits Encouraging energy reduction through behaviour change

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3.1 Aim and project plan The project was composed of three phases: 1) Training CHAT’s existing network of “Health Champions” covering fuel-poverty, energy efficiency and simple retrofits 2) Champions visited vulnerable householders to: a. Give advice about fuel poverty & energy efficiency b. Install simple retrofit measures c. Encourage householders to take a pledge 3) Follow up phone calls to householders to assess: a. Gather feedback on effectiveness of measures installed b. How householders are getting on with their pledge Added value Match funded by City Bridge Trust, LSx were able to provide capacity building to other communities in Brent working with CHAT to support us in wider training session in sustainability and climate change, and sustainable travel & air quality.

This helped the volunteers to have an understanding of general environmental issues and better understand the importance and context of reducing energy usage.

We are also able to offer ECO-Audits to organisation offices also funded by City Bridge Trust. We have already conducted and ECO- Audit of CHAT’s offices.

We are also continuing to work with CHAT as we have one named champion working with us through the Energy Saving Champion

3.2 Theory of Change Diagram 3.1, below outlines the intended theory of the change of the project. The actions carried out led to: •

67.9 tonnes of Carbon /yr saved by installing the retrofit energy efficiency solutions. (overall figure)

•

213 beneficiary households who received a visit and behaviour change advice.

•

165 pledges made by residents to reduce their energy usage.

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Methods & Techniques

Indicators

Outputs & Outcomes

Overall Objectives

Diagram 3.1 Theory of Change (continued) Train champions to engage vulnerable householders

Enable energy efficiency by installing retrofits - reducing of carbon emissions & household bills

Encourage energy reduction through behaviour change

Training workshops with champions

Retrofit measures installed

Householders learn about environmental actions and make a pledge

Increase knowledge and understanding of energy efficiency Champions to be confident in installing retrofit measures Vulnerable households identified

Improved energy efficiency Reduced instances of fuel poverty

Householders reduce their energy-use through behavioural change

Indicators of Outputs Number of champions Champions trained Households identified

Indicators of Outputs Number of household visits Measures installed

Indicators of Outputs Number of pledges made and kept Number of pledges

Indicators of Outcomes  Increase in new skills and confidence of champions

Indicators of Outcomes  Associated carbon and monetary savings related to measures installed

Indicators of Outcomes  Associated carbon and monetary savings related to pledges

Baseline and Follow-up Surveys Associated carbon and monetary savings

Baseline and Follow-up surveys Associated carbon and monetary savings

Exit surveys Photographs

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How it works?

This table provides a summary of “retrofit solutions” utilised by Champions Solution Draught proofing for windows and doors using foam tape

How it works Seals gaps around windows, doors and loft hatches to prevent heat loss through draughts.

+/+ Reduces heat loss + Room temperature more stable + Low-cost +Ease of installation - Installation time can be long - May interfere with opening and closing windows - Not visually attractive

Radiator Reflector Panels to fit behind radiators

Prevents heat being wasted on heating the wall behind the radiator by reflecting it back.

+Reduces heat loss +Ease of installation +Low-cost

Make-Shift Secondary Glazing

Improve thermal insulation of windows by trapping a layer of air. (Similar to double glazing)

+ Reduces heat loss through windows +Low-cost +Ease of installation - Installation time can be long - May interfere with opening and closing windows - Not visually attractive

4. Results & Outcomes 4.1 Headline results Total savings  Total carbon savings of approximately 67.9 tonnes/yr  Total financial savings of approximately £22,000 /yr Installed (retrofit) measures  Carbon savings of 35.43 tonnes /yr  Financial savings of £9,500/yr Behavioural change  Carbon savings of up to 32.474 tonnes /yr  Financial savings of up to £12,546 /yr 8

4.2 Project Outcomes

“The session was good and the instructor was very understandable” – Project Champion

Building skills: New learning, increased skills and confidence   

18 Champions trained 100% of Champions reported new learning and an increase in understanding of issues related to energy efficiency 100% of Champions reported increased confidence and skills in terms of installing retrofit measures

This work has allowed CHAT to improve the services that their Health Champions can provide to the vulnerable network they support. While the materials will not be readily available in the future, CHAT champions will be able to support the local community through the advice and skill sharing that they gained through the involvement of this project.

Vulnerable households identified 

213 Household visits and retrofit installations

Utilising CHAT’s Health Champions and their support network we were able to easily identify vulnerable householders. This allowed us to reach far more households than would have otherwise been possible, aiding the success of our program.

Improving sustainable habits       

128 more participants now make an effort to wash clothes using the 30° cycle, or have pledged to do so.

105 more participants now make an effort to not leave electric equipment/phone chargers on standby, or have pledged to do so 89 more participants now make an effort to heat only one or two rooms rather than the whole house, or have pledged to do so.

78 more participants now make an effort to turn off the lights when not in the room, or have pledged to do so.

53 more participants now make an effort to only fill their kettle with the amount of water needed for tea/coffee, or have pledged to do so.

36 more participants now make an effort to dry clothes without using a tumble dryer, or have pledged to do so 35 more participants now make an effort to “It is good to save money and to wear warmer clothes indoors instead of keep the house warm” turning on the heating, or have pledged to do - Beneficiary so.

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The project was successful in providing information on different ways to reduce energy usage and encouraging participants to practise sustainable habits.

One of the issues associated with fuel poverty is that individuals do not necessarily possess the appropriate knowledge to reduce their energy usage. This is particularly true of less overt actions (such as turning off lights) which can be seen in prevalence of the reported behaviours (87% reporting that they always switch off lights when not in the room) and the popularity of certain pledges made in the baseline.

Two of the seven suggested actions were not well known or practiced; 93 participants did not ever consider heating rooms individually and 96 did not consider washing at 30°C. However, from the follow up, it could be seen that this was reduced to 18 and 16 respectively.

There was a significant increasing the in the actions participants always do:  On average 38 more participants ‘always’ completed any one of the seven behavioural change actions, ranging from; - 75 more participants ‘always’ turned electrical appliances off (rather than standby).

- 16 more participants ‘always’ Put on warmer clothes indoors instead of turning on the heating.

Installation of low-tech retrofit solutions   

205 radiator reflector panels were installed 202 draught excluder tapes were installed 12 secondary glazing films were installed

Radiator reflector panels were the most popular measure, installed in 205 households.

Draught proofing was the most effective ‘retrofit’ utilised in this project with a total savings of approximately £6,000/yr and carbon saving of approximately 24 tonnes /yr.

Only 12 secondary glazing films were installed. This was due to the fact that secondary glazing is only suitable to be fitted on certain types of window and doors panels.

If all 200 homes were fitted with secondary glazing, over £30,000 and 84 tonnes of carbon could have been saved from just the secondary glazing films alone.

Reduced energy usage 

Total carbon savings of approximately 67.9 tonnes/yr



- Retrofit measures resulted in savings of 35.43 tonnes /yr - Behavioural changes resulted in savings of up to 32.474 tonnes /yr 85% reported improved thermal comfort in their house.

Through installing low-tech retrofits and giving advice on behaviour changes to save energy, the majority of our participants were able to reduce the energy that they used at home. This indicates that we were successful in helping participants to reduce their carbon footprint and decrease fuel poverty.

Financial savings 

Total financial savings of approximately £22,000per year - Retrofit measures resulted in savings of £9500/yr - Behavioural changes resulted in savings of up to £12,546/yr

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The project was successful in that the overall financial saving for this project are greater than the project cost.

Improved wellbeing 



167 participants (85%) reported improved thermal comfort in their home 113 participants (58%) reported worrying less about gas and electricity bills

Although only three low-tech retrofits were used in this project, they still made a significant difference to the thermal efficiency of the participant’s homes. 85% reported improved increased thermal comfort, this doesn’t just improve their quality of living but intuitively suggests less energy was used to heat their homes and therefore financial savings have already been made.

Longevity These savings will continue over a longer term as radiator panels can last up to 60 years, and draught tape up to 20, when properly installed. The secondary glazing is temporary, but this still means that 81% of the benefits and savings could continue for up to 20 years. Although there was a 49% drop off in pledges in the follow-up we could expect the behaviour changes made to be maintained as the champions and clients have an on-going relationship and so will continue to reinforce the new social norms, especially as people see a difference in their bills.

“So nice to save a bit of money” - Beneficiary

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5. Conclusions and Recommendations From this work, a number of conclusions and recommendations can be drawn.

5.1 Conclusions Training frontline workers This project was effective due to the readily available access vulnerable householders and the existing trust and relationships with the Health Champions.

Given the project success, the first conclusion that could be draw is: utilising & up-skilling “front-line workers” is extremely effective for helping networks of vulnerable people tackle fuel poverty.

Soft measures (behavioural change) vs hard measures (retrofitting) It was found that hard measures and soft measures resulted in similar levels of carbon savings, although there was a considerable difference in financial savings. Both methods had advantages and disadvantages, but this project was successful in utilising both together to reduce energy usage.

Of the 141 pledges made in the initial visit, 91 (65%) were kept up in the follow up.

Interestingly, of the 419 insulation measure installed there were 5 households that were unable to install any measures (this could be due to radiator, window and door fittings specific to that house). Although this did not preclude them making pledges to reduce energy use, only one of these households kept the pledge in the follow up representing a 1 in 5 or 20% upkeep of the pledge – much lower than the average It could be concluded that the introduction of the hard-measures –or “enablers” reinforced the softer ones and the upkeep of certain behaviours.

The next conclusion that can be drawn from this work is: “enablers” enable and encourage behaviour change. The tangibility of the measures, both their physical presence in the household and their associated benefit encouraged the uptake of pledges and behavioural change.

“I am keeping it up. I have seen some improvements in my heating. Thank you!”

- Beneficiary

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5.2 Recommendations Up-skilling frontline workers Based first conclusion, the first recommendation is that: the activation of similar front-line workers in other formal and informal networks and organisations would provide significant support to vulnerable and fuel-poor householders across the country. The up-skilling of frontline workers to be equipped to deal with energy efficiency advice and reduce fuel poverty is something that is propelled by the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s Big Energy Saving Network (BESN) 2015.

Sticky measures, stuck behaviour Based on the second conclusion and making use of the first, the second recommendation is that: “enablers� should be made available for fuel-poor and vulnerable household to both enable and encourage the reduction of fuel-bills; these can be delivered through a network of trusted front-line workers

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6. Project spending Item of expenditure Staff costs

Proposed spending

Actual spending

£ 7494,00

£6745

Material costs

£ 2300,00

£2150

Volunteer expenses

£ 200,00

£1099

Total

£9994,00

£9994.00

Comments on performance Some extra work was put in to Monitoring and Evaluation We had some materials from a previous project that we were able to use.

Several interns were able to gain valuable experience through the project. This resourcing allowed us to extend the timescale of the project

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7. Appendix Table 1 - Carbon and Money Savings EST from Energy Savings Trust

Carbon savings and financial savings were calculated using the Carbon and Money Savings Estimation factsheet form Energy Saving Trust. Each type of retrofit and behavioural change actions has an associated value for carbon and financial savings (see appendix). The savings were calculated by simply multiplying the number of ‘Actions’ undertaken by the participants, with the associated value. E.g. If 100 participants dried their clothes outside or on the line, the associated savings for that particular action would be: Carbon savings (Kg per year/per house) = 100 x 310= 3100 Kg/yr/house Financial savings (£ per year/per house) = 100 x £192=£1920 /yr/house

Action

Behaviour change/ One time investment

Carbon saved per year (kg/year)*house

Money saved per year (£/year)*house

126

£30

3150

£750.00

24

£10

48

£60.00

Behaviour change

44

£10

3036

£690.00

Behaviour change

310

£192

1860

£11,160.00

10.95

£8

87.6

£64.00

6150

£1,640.00

24240

£6,060.00

5040

£1,800.00

Turn appliances off and avoid standby Turn off lights when leaving the room Wash your clothes at 30oC Dry clothes outside or on the line Boil only as much water in the kettle as you need Reflective radiator panel Draught proofing

Behaviour change

Heating savings Insulation savings

30

8

120

30

Temporary glazing film Tot. Kg/Carbon Tot ton/Carbon

Insulation savings

420

150

Behaviour change

Behaviour change

(Kg Carbon/year)tot saved

(£/year)tot Bills savings

43611.6 43.6116

£22,224.00

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Figure 1 - retrofit energy efficiency solutions carbon reductions

Figure 2 - Carbon savings

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