The Nuanced Routes to Meeting Decarbonisation Goals
FOREWORD
Welcome to the latest edition of Hydrogen Industry Leaders, a magazine dedicated to the pioneers and visionaries shaping the future of the hydrogen economy. In this issue, we explore the innovations, challenges, and triumphs of an industry that stands at the forefront of the global energy transition.
In this edition, we delve into the latest technological advancements from hydrogen safety, to storage and distribution innovations. We also examine the policy frameworks and market dynamics driving investment and growth in hydrogen infrastructure worldwide.
Innovation in retrofit leaves the housing sector in an exciting position - but skills gap remains
Floyd March Editor
Paul Rose Graphic Designer
Hannah Wintle Multi Media Journalist
RESIDENTS CO-CREATE TOOLKIT WITH SETTLE FOR ENHANCING NEW DEVELOPMENTS
TOOLKIT FOR NEW DEVELOPMENTS
Residents have worked in partnership with settle to influence new housing developments, ensuring they meet the requirements of a neighbourhood design approach residents helped to create.
settle’s new estate design toolkit, developed in partnership with its Voice of the Resident (VoR) panel and Tpas, aims to help settle develop highquality, sustainable homes that its residents can be proud of.
The toolkit provides a comprehensive framework for evaluating and informing future housing developments on aspects such as connectivity, movement of people, facilities, signage and integration with the wider neighbourhood.
Input from settle’s residents was integral to the creation of the toolkit. Members of the VoR panel were deeply involved in creating the toolkit, participating in workshops and field trips, and collaborating with Tpas to ensure the toolkit reflects what matters most to residents.
MEMBERS OF THE VOR PANEL WERE DEEPLY INVOLVED IN CREATING THE TOOLKIT, PARTICIPATING IN WORKSHOPS AND FIELD TRIPS, AND COLLABORATING WITH TPAS TO ENSURE THE TOOLKIT REFLECTS WHAT MATTERS MOST TO RESIDENTS.
SETTLE ALSO CONDUCTED
A SURVEY OF NEARLY 550 RESIDENTS WHO HAD MOVED INTO NEW DEVELOPMENTS
settle also conducted a survey of nearly 550 residents who had moved into new developments in the past two to five years, which revealed insights into their feelings about their homes and communities.
Findings highlighted the importance of community sense, pride in their neighbourhoods, and ease of navigation within their areas.
The first scheme assessed using the toolkit has been approved by settle’s executive team. This scheme was evaluated based on features highlighted by residents as essential, including accessible transport routes, green spaces, and community amenities.
Gavin Cansfield, Chief Executive at settle, said: “We are delighted to launch our neighbourhood design toolkit, which truly embodies our commitment to putting residents at the heart of everything we do and driving continuous improvements in our housing developments.
“The toolkit’s scoring mechanism ensures that we rigorously assess each new scheme against residents’ priorities and ensures new developments benefit the existing community as well as residents on the housing waiting list.
“It is a testament to the power of collaboration between our residents and our team, ensuring that our developments are not only high-quality and sustainable, but also places where people are proud to live.”
Voice of the Resident panel member Annette commented on behalf of the panel: “I was really pleased to be included with other Voice of the Resident panel members throughout this project.
It was great to share our views. I’m proud of the toolkit we’ve helped create and that it will improve developments for future residents and the wider community.” The VoR panel is just one of the ways residents influence settle’s work.
The panel work alongside other well-established resident voice initiatives, including the Big Door Knock, now in its sixth year, which sees settle colleagues including the Executive team and Board members visit residents every quarter to obtain valuable feedback on the organisation’s homes and services.
SETTLE’S VOR PANEL HAS BEEN INSTRUMENTAL IN SEVERAL OTHER KEY INITIATIVES
settle’s VoR panel has been instrumental in several other key initiatives, including feedback on the information settle compiled for residents on ways they can make a complaint. settle wanted to ensure the information was clear and aligned with the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code.
The panel helped settle complete the complaint handling code selfassessment and suggested various updates to make the information clearer, as well as producing a complaints leaflet and poster.
With a tenant led focus on operations at Stonewater, this is also followed up with the employment of social housing tenants across multiple roles at the association.
Cassie Fisher has been a Compliance Coordinator at Mount Green for the last two years, working with residents to solve issues across a variety of maintenance challenges they’re facing. What’s unusual about Cassie is that she’s a Mount Green resident, as well as being a member of the team supporting residents.
Although she says no two days are the same in her role, here Cassie shares an example of what she might get up to in a day.
THE FIRST THING I NEED DO WHEN I ARRIVE AT WORK EACH DAY IS TO ALWAYS CHECK THE COMPLIANCE 60-DAY WORKSHEET.
Cassie Fisher, Compliance Coordinator, Mount Green
DAY IN THE LIFE OF A COMPLIANCE COORDINATOR
The first thing I need do when I arrive at work each day is to always check the compliance 60-day worksheet. This is to make sure I’m up to date on all the current jobs and to see whether I need to send any letters to residents. My job is to make sure we’re compliant as a landlord and to ensure our actions reflect this.
Next, I’ll open our compliance app, which contains everything we look after in terms of repairs, to see whether anything’s expired and make sure everything’s in date. I’ll also look to follow up with contractors if they’re missing out on any service reports.
After that, I’ll mostly be taking phone calls, replying and sending emails and attending meetings. I attend a weekly meeting with my manager which gives me an oversight of what’s happening within the department and the wider company.
After lunch and a break from my desk I take time to reply to any emails I didn’t get the chance to look at earlier in the day and then often I’m on the phone to residents again
A lot of my job is on the phone, which I’m grateful for as I love talking to the residents to make sure they’re happy. Being a resident myself, I can understand things from the inside and outside of our organisation, which I think my fellow residents appreciate.
I understand any worries or concerns they may have and an aspect I love about my role is being able to get stuck into a case and make sure issues are solved as quickly and thoroughly as possible. I recently helped a family who were having trouble with their hot water and heating, and they were so grateful, they got me flowers and chocolates! Moments like that really make me value my job.
BACK TOMORROW TO FOLLOW UP ON…
Electronic filing! I always set aside a day each week to complete this as it’s a full day’s work in itself. I make sure any certificates or reports that have come in are all recorded in the right place for us to refer and go back to – not as fun as speaking to the residents, but just as important!
I feel communication with residents is key, whether that be email, text or phone call. As long as you keep the resident informed, they remain happy, and I think that’s an extremely important thing to go forward with for compliance within the company.
ADDRESSING THE HOUSING CRISIS:
MAKING HOMEOWNERSHIP ATTAINABLE FOR FIRST-TIME BUYERS
BY MARK KNIGHT CHIEF EXECUTIVE OF GLEESON HOMES
Get Britain building again” is Labour’s rallying catch cry with a pledge to build 1.5m new homes during the lifetime of this Government. Crucial to this agenda is making housing more affordable for all, particularly first-time buyers (FTBs), who are key to unlocking broader market recovery...
HOMEOWNERSHIP FOR BUYERS
BY MARK KNIGHT, CHIEF
THE CHALLENGES FACING FIRST-TIME BUYERS
In recent years, prospective homeowners have faced a turbulent market. Political instability, with three prime ministers in quick succession, frequent economic policy U-turns, rising interest rates, and a cost-of-living crisis, have eroded buyer confidence. While affordability at all levels of the housing ladder has worsened, first-time buyers have been hit hardest.
The affordability crisis for FTBs escalated in 2023. With rents hitting an all-time high, up by 7.3% yearon-year in 2024 according to the latest ONS data, it’s been increasingly difficult for buyers to save for deposits. Full-time employees in England now face house prices that are 8.3 times their average annual earnings, leaving many FTBs priced out of the market and struggling to secure a mortgage.
The 2022 mini-budget also sent shockwaves through the market, with mortgage rates surging from around 3.66% to over 6%. This caused mortgage lenders to pull products from the market, making homeownership even less accessible. The end of the Help to Buy scheme (HtB) in 2023 removed a key support mechanism for FTBs, narrowing affordable homeownership options. The HtB product was very successful and carried no burden to the taxpayer, with loans now being paid back. However, it remains unclear where the
LOOKING AT THE SOLUTIONS
The role of new-build homes
New-build homes can provide a more affordable alternative. Gleeson’s homes, typically priced around 20% below the regional market average, offering FTBs a more attainable path to homeownership. With many households renting or stuck on local authority waiting lists, affordable homeownership is crucial in helping alleviate pressure on the rental sector
The need for collaboration
There also needs to be more of a coordinated effort between policymakers and housebuilders. While government-backed initiatives such as Own New and Shared Ownership offer alternatives for those without access to traditional financing options, we still need more incentives that stimulate homeownership and enable potential FTBs step on to the housing ladder.
returns from these loans have been allocated, raising questions about whether these funds could be reinvested into housing initiatives to further support FTBs.
Beyond macroeconomic pressures, an overly bureaucratic planning system has exacerbated the housing issue by delaying the delivery of new homes. These delays are especially acute in high-demand areas, leaving many FTBs trapped in the rental market, unable to make the leap to homeownership.
Empowering FTBs with financial tools for homeownership
In addition to addressing affordability, it’s important to incentivise FTBs to make the most of existing financial tools, such as Lifetime ISAs, that will help them achieve homeownership. Greater awareness and targeted incentives - such as matched government contributions for new-build homes - could encourage more FTBs to use these tools, making homeownership more achievable.
To stimulate FTB activity, we must restore market confidence, to ensure they feel secure in their ability to afford and maintain new homes. Affordable mortgages, targeted financial advice, and government-backed schemes can provide the stability and assurance FTBs need to commit to homeownership.
LABOUR’S
PLANNING REFORMS, COMBINED WITH
A
RENEWED FOCUS ON AFFORDABLE HOUSING OFFER A CLEAR PATH FORWARD
THE ROLE HOUSEBUILDERS CAN PLAY
Housebuilders like Gleeson Homes can play a significant role in improving affordability for FTBs. With an average home selling for £185,700 - 34% lower than the regional average of £281,000 –Gleeson ensures that couples earning the National Living Wage can afford a home across all our developments. By ensuring mortgage payments as a percentage of take-home pay are more manageable for those in lower earning brackets, we help FTBs transition into homeownership while supporting broader market recovery.
Challenges remain but early signs of recovery are emerging, thanks to political stability under the new Labour government, and steady interest rates. Despite that, the government must introduce fiscal support to alleviate the burden of rising mortgage costs and inflation. This, combined with meaningful planning reform, will go a long way in ensuring FTBs can achieve home ownership.
We all need to play our part, to bring market confidence back - to stimulate the thousands of FTBs that have the affordability, and just need the confidence and security to buy and afford to run their new home. Housebuilders and policymakers need to better collaborate to make homeownership a possibility for all, regardless of socioeconomic circumstance.
Labour’s planning reforms, combined with a renewed focus on affordable housing offer a clear path forward, but this is just one element of stimulating increased house-buying activity. As put by Angela Rayner at the 2023 Labour Party Conference, “A secure home is a game changer and crucial foundation for a good life” and we are committed to unlocking the market for FTBs and to secure a stable future for the UK housing sector.
COULD A CROSS DEPARTMENTAL HOUSING DELIVERY UNIT HELP COORDINATE POLICY?
After the recent publication of the ‘Beyond the permacrisis – delivering 1000 homes per day’, the Commission urges the Government to recognise that housing is national infrastructure.
Author’s of the report explained that It is a critical driver of economic prosperity and growth and that in all aspects, a more integrated, long-term approach to governance, funding, planning and delivery will enable the transformative change needed to tackle the housing permacrisis.
“The failure to meet decades of housing targets or fully adopt the original recommendations of the 2004 Barker Review of Housing Supply lies predominantly with flawed governance structures.
“On implementation and delivery, we offer an innovative new governance framework for housing, a clear strategy, a new housing delivery unit at the heart of government, cross-party collaboration and clarified roles for different tiers of government.”
We also recognise the intense pressures on public finances but urge the Government to be bold and target longer-term investment to address the systemic issues in health, education, social care and inequality that have their roots in poor housing.
COHERENT ALIGNMENT TO THE FISCAL DEVOLUTION ALREADY UNDERWAY COULD SHIFT THE OUTCOMES
It has been highlighted across sector reports that a focus on achievable efÏciencies and savings, process simplification and coherent alignment to the fiscal devolution already underway could shift the outcomes for citizens and communities as well as allowing the Government to make progress towards its own demanding target of 1.5million new homes.
On this, the report stated: “There are significant volumes of global capital interested in but still cautious about investing in our housing market. Institutional investors need clarity, confidence and commitment that the policy and regulatory goalposts won’t suddenly move.
“We need to offer a stable platform to secure that investment, make better use of rental tenures in the housing mix and rapidly agree a new rent settlement to deliver more affordable housing.”
TO DELIVER THIS, A RETURN TO STRATEGIC PLANNING IS KEY
Making a plan-led system viable and allowing planners to be planners and enable investment rather than be solely focussed on development control.
To catalyse investment across all tenures at scale, additionality of supply is key and the potential of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to contribute alongside larger entities must be harnessed and enabled – there are too many policy barriers that could and should be removed.
15 RECOMMENDATIONS TO DELIVER REPORTS FINDINGS
Encompassing all of the findings from the report, there were 15 core recommendations for the Government to follow. The first three recommendations included the establishment of a new Housing Delivery Unit and an Independent Statutory Housing Committee, the creation and implementation of a secure UK Housing Strategy, and forge a Cross-Party Accord.
Other recommendations were as follows:
1. Facilitate the release of public sector land for housing
2. Provide specific support for local and combined authorities
3. Rethink the role of Homes England so it can act as a master developer potentially working with Development Corporations or other alternative bodies or structures.
4. Streamline existing funding pots and processes.
5. Recognise the importance of rental tenures to the wider housing mix and support the broadest range of tenures and delivery models. Amongst these vital recommendations, the report also explained that recognising the critical role of institutional investment in housing and reforming the current system of developer contributions through Section 106 and the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), with a particular goal to deliver more affordable housing, instead of implementing the proposed Infrastructure Levy is of the utmost importance.
The final five recommendations include:
1. Agree a prompt rent settlement that provides income security for Registered Providers and provide an enlarged Affordable Housing Programme from 2026.
2. Restore a mandatory approach to strategic planning at the sub-regional/city region level to support the plan-led system to free up planners for spatial planning rather than regulatory development management functions.
3. Establish a new team within MHCLG to provide a more coordinated approach to strategic planning within the department (i.e. across teams working on planning policy and delivery; devolution and city growth; housing policy). It should work across departments in concert with the new Housing Delivery Unit to ensure strategic plans can fully support growth.
4. Commission an independent review of the Metropolitan Green Belt to identify strategic opportunities for growth, including new or expanded towns.
5. The final recommendation was to develop a new, bespoke policy for supporting SME, communityled and self/custom-build housebuilders and the increased delivery of small and medium sized sites to boost the supply of housing in the short to medium term. This could incorporate specific amendments to the NPPF (National Planning Policy Framework), for example, by supporting Permission in Principle.
RECOMMENDATION 13 HIGHLIGHTS THE CONSIDERABLE CHALLENGE AHEAD - BUT OPPORTUNITIES ARISE FROM THIS
While the recommendations are vast and highlight issues across the whole value chain of the housing sector, it is worth breaking down the thirteenth recommendation: “Establish a new team within MHCLG to provide a more coordinated approach to strategic planning within the department (i.e. across teams working on planning policy and delivery; devolution and city growth; housing policy). It should work across departments in concert with the new Housing Delivery Unit to ensure strategic plans can fully support growth.”
A key role of strategic planning is to provide an integrated framework for managing growth on a spatial basis.
It will be crucial for all the new strategic planning bodies to ensure that spatial priorities set through the strategic plans are fully aligned with other key plans and strategies that will play a part in delivering sustainable growth, especially local growth plans, local nature recovery strategies and local transport plans.
THE SUPPORT PROVIDED BY GOVERNMENT ACROSS ALL THE DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS INVOLVED WILL THEREFORE PLAY AN IMPORTANT PART IN GETTING THIS INTEGRATED APPROACH RIGHT
The report built on this: “The support provided by government across all the different departments involved will therefore play an important part in getting this integrated approach right. Alongside the proposed new Housing Delivery Unit, the Government should establish a new team with MHCLG that can act as the ringmaster for strategic planning, working across teams both within and outside the Department to deliver a consistent approach.
“The Government has made it clear that the focus for growth will continue to be the main urban areas although they will be expected to work together (through strategic planning) with neighbouring authorities to ensure needs are met in full. Many of the larger urban areas are surrounded by green belt and again, the Government has made it clear that these will need to be reviewed through the strategic plans.”
Whilst for most areas this will be relatively straightforward given the number of local planning authorities involved, it is a much more complicated process for the Metropolitan Green Belt (MGB) which surrounds London.
With among the oldest and most energy efficient homes in Europe, Scotland’s mission to update its housing stock ahead of its net zero target in 2045 will prove challenging. The Housing to 2040 scheme seeks to tackle not only this, but several ambitious targets, including providing more affordable housing and adopting a place-based approach to building communities.
The housing sector, therefore, has its work cut out to achieve these goals, and working collaboratively with the supply chain, local authorities, and central government will be essential to their success.
To aid in this endeavour, the Housing Industry Leaders Scotland Conference brought together the public and private sectors, to reconnect over shared goals, celebrate progress to date, and assess next steps.
With a wide variety of organisations in attendance, the conference enjoyed in-depth and analytical presentations that addressed the pressing issues facing the sector today, and panel discussions that platformed key insights from the experts who know best.
As 2024 steadily draws to a close, the new year presents a chance to fortify the advancements already made with further progress, and trigger lasting change throughout Scotland by delivering a housing sector that works for all.
SHAPING THE FUTURE
The day opened with an emphasis on the moral responsibility of the housing sector to do right by Scottish citizens, whether that is through encouraging behavioural change around showering habits, which Triton Showers pointed out could have significant positive repercussions including reduced bills and conserved water, or by following the Scottish Procurement Alliance’s advice on the importance of integrating social value into procurement procedures.
Social value became a key topic for the morning, and Michael McLaughlin, Head of Social Value at HACT, emphasised the importance of tracking positive change, especially as many societies are falling further into poverty due to the ongoing housing crisis.
“We drive change, and we have the potential to drive change every day, so it should be incumbent, especially in the social housing sector, to be able to demonstrate, measure, and report on the change that we’re making,” he said.
If the public sector can understand the impact that social value is having on the community, this data can be used to drive better decisions around resourcing and service delivery. In addition, Michael highlighted the potential of social housing specifically to deliver impact on a scale that other sector’s can’t, simply due to being place-based organisations, working in the built environment, and acting as community anchors by understanding the local need.
We should be driving more change to change more lives
Michael McLaughlin, Head of Social Value at HACT
Through tools such as the UK Social Value Bank, HACT enables social housing providers to measure their social and environmental impact, and improve services, enhance decision-making, and increase their impact thereafter.
DECARBONISING HEAT IN SCOTTISH COMMUNITIES
Heat networks and communal heating was also introduced as a key consideration for the morning, with Gillian Campbell, Communications and Public Affairs Lead at the Existing Homes Alliance Scotland, highlighting that social value can be achieved through addressing the way Scotland heats its homes, and working to lift 31% of Scottish households out of fuel poverty.
“For many of us, heat networks and shared heating systems will be the most likely heating solution, particularly for those who live in more dense, urban areas,” Gillian said, drawing attention to the heat networks already active in Glasgow and Edinburgh. While some of these are powered by gas currently, they will need to switch to renewable sources over the next two years.
We need to do more. We need to pick up the pace if we’re going to end fuel poverty and meet climate change targets.
Despite the challenges of introducing more heat networks, such as cost and supply chain capacity, the benefits to be reaped are not only warm and affordable homes, but new jobs, businesses, and progress towards a net zero Scotland.
Gillian highlighted that the Scottish Government must create the right environment for industry and investors to facilitate the introduction of communal heating, including publishing the Heat in Buildings Bill by the Autumn, providing certainty for social landlords through the Social Housing Net Zero Standard and Social Housing Net Zero Heat Fund, introducing long term financing solutions, and offering advice and support.
With Ofgem having been appointed the regulators of heat networks, Mike Leonard, Senior Policy Lead at Ofgem said: “Our aim is to establish a framework to regulate heat networks that protects the interests of consumers, but that is also proportionate and cost effective.
As well as ensuring consumers have access to clear information about the terms of their supply, recourse to a complaints handling process, fair pricing, and a reliable source of heat, Ofgem will aso require heat network providers to identify consumers in vulnerable circumstances so that tailored support can be provided.
In terms of cost, Mike added: “We need to manage the cost of regulation responsibly, as these will ultimately be met by not only heat network consumers, but those costs will be shared by gas and electricity consumers.
“And, we’re very conscious of the need to consider the ability of heat network providers to finance the obligations that the new regulatory framework will place on them.”
To expand upon the issue of regulation, and touch on policy matters, the morning’s panel discussion welcomed Neal Rafferty, Head of Heat Strategy & Consumer Policy for the Scottish Government to provide his insight.
He said: “Introducing the bill and regulations that we’ve said we’re going to do has to be done extremely carefully, as we have to get it right.”
During consultations, Neal explained that respondents were generally supportive in principle, though concerns around flexibility, the need for support, and how the bill will apply to different building types, tenures, and regions did arise.
We are working our way through all that. We’re working hard and hope to be able to say more shortly.
Gillian, taking to the stage again for the discussion, laid out certain expectations for what the bill should contain in order to maximise potential for heat networks. “The bill should contain a clear trigger for heat network zones, so if you’re living within one and there’s a heat network available for connection, then there should be an obligation on you to end your use of fossil fuel heating,” she said.
This would give certainty and assurance to heat network developers, so that they know there’s a business case for them to invest in heat networks.
Additionally, she explained the necessity for a point of purchase trigger, which requires that if someone buys a property, within a period of time they should be required to end their use of fossil fuels, so as to create a pipeline of work for industry at a manageable pace and enable them to scale up delivery.
As conversation turned back to regulation, Shona Fisher, Head of Heat Networks at Ofgem, commented that when it comes to heat networks, consumers knowing what standards to expect, the prices they’re charged, and having an escalation route if needed, are all key benefits.
She said: “Over time, as we get data from the sector and understand more about heat networks and consumer experience, we can use that to highlight what’s working particularly well, areas we need to improve, and it will enable us and move away from poor outcomes such as high charges for customers when there’s been a catch up following an energy crisis, and hopefully we can provide clarity on what is happening in the sector for consumers.”
Finian Parrick, Business Development Director at Evinox, also highlighted the importance of heat network operators publishing data around the efficiency of their scheme. He explained: “The problem that we have is that many housing associations and authorities won’t have a clue on how efficient their heat networks are.”
Regulation that calls for this data to be publicly available creates an environment where problems can be identified, and the right people with solutions can come in with innovative solutions.
80% of the housing association’s homes were built between 1919 and 1975, when energy efficiency wasn’t considered a priority in construction design, and 70% using gas for heating and hot water
Richard Orr Head of asset Management, River Clyde Homes
A STRATEGIC APPROACH TO ASSET MANAGEMENT
A significant challenge Scotland faces is bringing their existing stock up to today’s efficiency standards. Richard Orr, Head of Asset Management at River Clyde Homes, explained how 80% of the housing association’s homes were built between 1919 and 1975, when energy efficiency wasn’t considered a priority in construction design, and 70% using gas for heating and hot water.
To approach the challenges of their housing stock, River Clyde Homes will carry out a robust analysis of data, centring around the five key performance indicators of financial performance, predicted demand, energy performance, strategic fit, and service intensity.
“The outcome of our analysis will be a zoning and grouping [of assets],” Richard said. “Once you have that, which considers archetypes and demands, it’s about understanding the data so that you can best manage that place and come up with solutions.”
“Ultimately, you want to end up with an indicative league table that will allow you to then prioritise your actions, come up with special measures in some areas, some of which is just about the upkeep of an area, and others will focus on regeneration opportunities.”
The financing of any measures is, of course, a huge consideration. With £22bn to invest across the five priority sectors of clean energy, transport, waste, water, and digital, Victoria Loughlan, Head of Climate Change Policy at UK Infrastructure Banks (UKIB), outlined UKIB’s approach.
Where retrofit is concerned, Victoria acknowledged the many challenges facing the sector, and expressed UKIB’s ambition to help overcome these accordingly. For example, prior to investment, UKIB will work with asset managers to understand what assets they have and what the plan for these assets are, so that the appropriate financial instrument can be implemented.
Revisiting the heat networks conversation, Victoria said: “It’s a really exciting sector to be working in just now, because there’s lots happening in the policy landscape until the end of the year and into the new year.
“We see, at the moment, that it’s still a niche market, still a lot of grant reliance, and still a limited investor appetite. We want to help the sector move onwards, because we know that once heat networks are operational, you get those utility style, stable, long-term revenues.”
To get there, UKIB will adopt a higher risk appetite and lean into uncertainties, be more flexible with capital to help calibrate repayments, offer tailored finance to suit individual opportunities, scale contribution to provide a meaningful proportion of a project’s cost, and offer a specialised advisory service and funding arm to help Local Authorities develop schemes.
TAKING INSPIRATION FROM OUR EUROPEAN NEIGHBOURS
Drew Murphy, Local Heat Planning Leader from Scottish Government, brought local heat and energy efficiency strategies (LHEES) into the conversation, explaining how long term heat plans for entire local authorities could help in decarbonisation drives and improve energy efficiency.
He highlighted how nations like Denmark have provided inspiration in terms of starting pilot projects in Scotland to understand how to take a local approach to planning heat decarbonisation.
Importantly, Drew emphasised the importance of collaboration: “LHEES are just a starting point, there’s a lot of work still to be done and a lot of collaboration needed to bring them to fruition.”
Joining the second panel discussion of the day, Morten Jordt Duedahl, Business Development Manager, Danish Board of District Heating shared Denmark’s experience, where two thirds of all buildings are heated through heat networks, and around 75% of the heat used is renewable, with full decarbonisation estimated to be achieved within the next few years.
“LHEES is a very important starting point,” he said. “It demonstrates that Scotland is on the right track in looking at large areas that we can then connect.”
With many of the discussions of the day centering around heat decarbonisation, social value, and financing, the Housing Scotland Conference 2024 platformed some of the key issues facing Scotland today, and asked the housing industry to consider how to create lasting change through partnerships, policy reform, and innovation.
When the sector reconvenes next year at the 2025 conference, it will be interesting to see what progress has been made in the meantime, and pick up these conversations again to identify routes to further successes.
For more information on the Housing Industry Leaders Scotland Conference, visit our website at housingindustryleaders.com to learn more about this event, as well as our other conferences throughout the UK.
With many of the discussions of the day centering around heat decarbonisation, social value, and financing, the Housing Scotland Conference 2024 platformed some of the key issues facing Scotland today
SIX TOWNS & CITIES TO PILOT CLEAN HEATING INNOVATION
Businesses and building owners across England are set to benefit from low-cost, low-carbon heating as 6 towns and cities have been selected to develop the country’s first heat network zones.
Developing zones for heat networks in urban areas is the cheapest and most efficient way of delivering the technology, which recycles excess heat – generated for example by data centres or from factories – to enable the heating of several buildings at once.
The ground-breaking schemes in Leeds, Plymouth, Bristol, Stockport, Sheffield, and 2 in London will receive a share of £5.8 million of government funding to develop the zones, with construction expected to start from 2026.
THIS WILL HELP TO CREATE TENS OF THOUSANDS OF JOBS INCLUDING ENGINEERING, PLANNING, MANUFACTURING
AND CONSTRUCTION ROLES.
Heat network zones use data to identify the best spots and help to plan and build the technology at scale.
They require suitable buildings, such as hotels and large offices, to connect when it is cost-effective for them to do so.
Minister for Energy Consumers Miatta Fahnbulleh said: “Heat network zones will play an important part in our mission to deliver clean power for the country, helping us take back control of our energy security.
As well as energy independence, they will support millions of businesses and building owners for years to come, with low-cost, low carbon heating –driving down energy bills.
Tens of thousands of green jobs will be created across the country, and that’s why we’re investing in developing these fantastic and innovative projects – developing the first zones in cities and towns across England.
The new schemes will provide heating using trailblazing sources. Excess heat from data centres – which would otherwise be wasted – will provide heating in the Old Oak and Park Royal Development, while the system planned in Leeds will take heat from a nearby glass factory to warm connected buildings.
DEVELOPING HEAT NETWORKS ACROSS THE COUNTRY HAS THE POTENTIAL TO CREATE TENS OF THOUSANDS OF JOBS THROUGH DELIVERING A LOW-CARBON HEATING TRANSFORMATION.
Types of buildings that could connect to a network include those that are already communally heated, and large non-domestic buildings over a certain size, such as hospitals, universities, hotels, supermarkets, and office blocks.
The 6 selected towns and cities are part of the government’s plan to accelerate the delivery of heat networks across
England in areas where zones are likely to be designated in the future. The learnings from these pilots will inform the work to reduce bills, enhance energy security, and achieve net zero by 2050.
CEO of the Association for Decentralised Energy Caroline Bragg said: “We are delighted to see government maintaining its support for the heat network sector.
“Heat network zones are crucial for a just transition for our communities - putting the UK on the lowest cost pathway to decarbonising our heat, attracting more than £3 of private investment for every £1 of public funding given and creating tens of thousands of local jobs.”
As we begin to deliver zoning at scale, it is crucial that the government and industry continue to work together to ensure heat networks can truly unleash their potential.
f Heat network zoning will designate areas where heat networks are expected to provide the lowest-cost, low carbon heating.
f It will give local communities the tools to accelerate the development of heat networks in their towns and cities.
f We want to give developers and investors more certainty about the number of likely connections to networks to help unlock the investment needed to build them.
f This will remove the barriers to greener, cheaper heat that currently limit the scale and pace of developing heat networks and encourage investment.
f This will allow for large-scale strategic heat networks to be built in towns and cities across the country.
UNLOCKING THE RETROFIT CONUNDRUM WITH IOT SOLUTIONS GROUP
Founded in May 2018, IoT Solutions Group has quickly established itself among the leaders in remote monitoring. In a crowded marketplace, where confusion is rife and digital solutions often disjointed, clients tell us that we are helping them deliver real value in a simple, costeffective way.
Damp and mould, retrofit and decarbonisation, the Golden Thread - the list of demands being placed on landlords is huge. Arguably, none of these challenges can be faced without technology and an intimate understanding of the social housing ecosystem.
That’s why, when we first developed our COSIE homes Pro solution, which is UK designed, manufactured and fully recycled, we worked in close collaboration with our housing sector clients to truly deliver against their needs.
TACKLING THE RETROFIT CHALLENGE
Retrofitting the national housing stock is the most critical climate problem to solve and without joined-up thinking and innovation, we will not meet Net Zero. Put simply, getting our 28 million homes retrofitted and renovated is the biggest engineering challenge the UK has ever faced.
Our homes use 35% of all the energy on the grid and emit 20% of the carbon dioxide emissions contributing to climate change. More than 80% of existing homes will still be standing and occupied in 2050; building 250,000 new homes adds only 1% per year to the stock each year, reducing domestic emissions by only 0.3%.
Simply building new zero-carbon homes will not get us close to the target. Embracing innovation is essential to drive holistic change that is sustainable and impactful.
But the very definition of retrofit brings its own challenges because it relates to the energy performance improvement of existing buildings, each with their own unique design and fabric.
Landlords are confronted with so many different types of properties and incumbent heating systems, where do they start? How can they be sure that measurements being taken before and after retrofit works are accurate to help them make the right decisions? And then there’s the human element. How can this be done with minimal disruption to the residents who live in these properties?
REAL DATA: REAL-TIME, ACTIONABLE INSIGHTS
Our solution, which is now being deployed across thousands of homes, is to meet these challenges head-on with one simple to use sensor - COSIE homes Pro - which provides smart remote monitoring, with a ‘no skills install’ to measure the energy performance of housing stock.
It continuously measures a dwelling’s HTC (Heat Transfer Coefficient) using real-time data to give an accurate and reliable measurement of efficiency – and much more insight than one-time, often inaccurate, EPC ratings.
COSIE homes Pro measures the energy fed into the building (from a Boiler or Electricity Power for example), and along with internal and external temperature data, it calculates energy efficiency in kilowatts per degree Celsius – so how much a given energy input actually warms the property. The less energy needed, the better!
HTC measurements can be taken before and after retrofit work is carried out to unequivocally prove the impact (and cost effectiveness) of improvements and thus be used to prove SHDF compliance to PAS2030.
As well as efficiency, COSIE homes Pro provides alerts of damp and mould risk in the property as well as of excess cold (potentially indicating fuel poverty) and excess heat. Condensation risk –potentially leading to damp and mould - is often increased after insulation retrofit where ventilation has been compromised.
The HTC measure can be used to evidence Warm Homes/SHDF compliance to PAS2035 and IoT Solutions Group provides a fully managed service including our compact IoT sensor devices, connectivity, secure, UK-based cloud analytics platform and alerts.
Our solution is heating agnostic so works with any fuel including oil, electric, GSHP, or ASHP heating systems, taking pre-and post- retrofit environmental measurements as well as alerting to high-risk damp and mould risk.
Housing providers get the information they need to act, with alerts sent straight into your automated workflows, or via an emailable scorecard enabling maintenance teams to respond faster.
This allows repair costs to be significantly reduced with fewer wasted property visits and early, proactive identification of issues rather than relying on residents to report problems when conditions may have deteriorated to the point that expensive repairs and re-housing are required.
DOUBLE DUTY MONITORING
As well as retrofit, COSIE homes Pro is used as a damp and mould alert system, helping landlords prove compliance. Under Awaab’s Law, landlords must now investigate any known or reported hazards within 14 days, provide a written summary of their findings within 48 hours and begin repair work within seven days if the hazard is found to pose a significant risk to the health or safety of tenants.
We need to do more. We need to pick up the pace if we’re going to end fuel poverty and meet climate change targets.
Enforcement action by the Regulator of Social Housing has increased significantly with more providers being named and shamed each month. As well as compensation payments and reputational damage, non-compliance can lead to legal proceedings. COSIE homes Pro makes using sophisticated technology simple – for providers and residents.
SO MUCH MORE THAN A SENSOR
Sustainability is at heart of everything we do and that starts with our sensors. It’s a oneoff investment, lasts forever, reduces the cost of emergency or disrepair remediation and re-housing. Installation requires no skilled tradespeople, additional parts or services for heating systems to install and start monitoring and providing real time data.
In short, it’s one of the simplest ways to ensure that retrofit works are doing what they’re supposed to do, and that tenants get the healthy, safe homes they deserve, now and in the future. It’s sustainable from a cost perspective too with a one-time investment including the device and typically 3-5 years of Service versus a big spend on unreliable, multi-vendor approaches that often deliver inaccurate data.
IoTSG COSIE Homes-Pro is so much more than a smart remote monitoring solution for the retrofit and damp and mould challenges faced by social housing landlords.
Our vision for this privacy-first compliance and care solution is a game-changer and will affect how this part of the sector operates. Our overriding aim at IoTSG is to improve communities and individuals’ lives – especially those who are vulnerable – and to give people the safe and healthy homes they deserve.
Theapplicationwindowfor the WarmHomes:Social HousingFund isnowopen.
APPLYNOW
Thiscompetitionwindowcloseson25/11/24,itwill provide fundingforprojects overthenextthreeyears (2025/26to2027/28).
The WarmHomes:SocialHousingFund offersRegisteredSocialLandlordsasignificantopportunityto decarbonisetheirportfolioswhiletakingresidentsoutoffuelpovertyforgood.Groundsourceheatpump technologyoffersunparalleledefficiencyandcarbonreductionthatcanachievethesegoals. Kensa’sexpertscanhelpyouidentify potential projectsanddevelopthebestfundingapplications.
