Programmes Carried out by Local Authorities

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Part Four: Retrofit programmes carried out by local authorities

• Local authorities have set out a number of programmes to retrofit the building stock within their areas.
• Two of the largest retrofit programmes in England are Retrofit London and Retrofit GM.

Retrofit London

• In December 2019, all 33 London Councils agreed on a Joint Statement on Climate Change which set out seven major programmes for cross-borough working. Retrofit London is the first programme.
• Retrofit London is a retrofit programme taken forward by all London Councils to achieve an average Energy Performance Certificate level of B across London’s domestic buildings by 2030.
• The aim of the programme as set out in the Joint Statement on Climate Change is to retrofit “all domestic and non-domestic buildings”. However, the scope of the programme, as set out in its official plans, is to retrofit domestic buildings only.
• According to the Retrofit London official plans, London’s domestic buildings are c. 3.7 million. This is in line with the total costs of the programme as estimated by multiplying London’s domestic buildings by a retrofit rate, as explained below.
• The estimated costs of the programme are outlined in the two following scenarios:
  • Scenario 1: c. 56% carbon reduction with a total cost of c. £49bn at a rate of c. £13,000 per domestic building; and
  • Scenario 2: Net Zero with a total cost of c. £98bn at a rate of c. £26,000 per domestic building.
• The programme is led by the London Councils of Enfield and Waltham Forest, as appointed in 2020 by the London Councils Transport and Environment Committee. Enfield and Waltham Forest work directly with London Councils to drive this programme forward.
• Enfield and Waltham Forest lead the programme with support from the London Councils and the London Housing Directors’ Group, a professional network of senior housing officers from across the 33 London Councils.
• The Retrofit London Housing Action Plan was launched in October 2021 following agreement of all London Councils and all London Borough Housing Directors.
• The Action Plan sets out a number of recommended actions (as listed in pages 11-12 of the Action Plan) covering four key areas, these areas are as follows:
  1. Retrofit measures and plans,
  2. Delivery mechanisms, skills and supply chain,
  3. Costs, finance and funding, and
  4. Engagement, take up and lobbying.
• Retrofit measures and plans under the Action Plan are listed in pages 37 – 68 and include:
  • Improving the building fabric of inefficient homes,
  • Developing a plan for retrofitting ventilation systems to improve health and air quality,
  • Electrifying heat,
  • Delivering smart meters and demanding flexibility in retrofitted homes,
  • Increasing solar energy generation on homes, and
  • Mapping out each building’s journey towards lower energy costs and Net Zero.
• The Retrofit London Housing Implementation Plan was launched in May 2022. It was the first annual plan of future iterations which aim to drive incremental progress towards the overall goal of the programme.
• The Implementation Plan takes the recommended actions from the Action Plan and translates them into priorities and tasks for delivery over a 12-month period.
• The period of the Implementation Plan came to an end in May 2023. No further official iterations have been published.
• According to Retrofit London Frequently Asked Questions, a Retrofit London Programme Management Office (PMO) will be launched. The PMO will lead the delivery of milestones highlighted raised through the Retrofit London Housing Implementation Plan.
• According to an unofficial document, the Retrofit London PMO has not yet been launched.

Retrofit GM

• In Greater Manchester there are over 880,000 domestic buildings, 2,700 public buildings and as yet unknown number of commercial buildings that will need to be retrofitted by 2038.
• Retrofit GM is a retrofit programme taken forward by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority to achieve:
  • An Energy Performance Certificate level of C across Greater Manchester’s domestic buildings by 2038,
  • An Energy Performance Certificate level of B across Greater Manchester’s non-domestic buildings by 2030, and
  • Enable a market which can renovate an average of 61,000 homes each year.
• The Retrofit GM Action Plan was launched in January 2022 covering the following three years. It sets out three priority areas:
  1. Boosting skills,
  2. Improving access to funding and finance, and
  3. Speeding up delivery
• Deliverables within the Action Plan 3-year period include:
  • 300 public buildings retrofitted,
  • 210 local authority-controlled schools retrofitted per annum,
  • 7,200 socially rented homes retrofitted, and
  • 12,000 willing to pay homes retrofitted.
• The Action Plan suggests that “Heat pump + cost effective fabric + solar PV” is the most cost-effective retrofit approach for achieving the programme’s targets.
• Retrofit measures considered in the Action Plan include loft or wall insulation, new windows or doors or solar panels, making them less draughty and easier and cheaper to heat.
• The cost of retrofitting a building under the Action Plan can be between £10,000 – £15,000.

Other retrofit programmes

• For completeness, Birmingham Energy Savers (‘BES’) was a large-scale programme taken forward by Birmingham City Council to retrofit 60,000 domestic buildings and 1,000 non-domestic buildings across the city by 2020.
• BES was launched in 2012 by the Birmingham City Council and its delivery partner Carillion Energy Services. The estimated costs of the programme were £1.6 billion.
• Due to financial constraints, the Birmingham City Council announced the early closure of the programme in 2015, having retrofitted just over 3,100 domestic buildings.The Energiesprong Model
• Energiesprong initiative has developed the idea of converting existing houses into net zero energy homes. This means over the year the house will generate all the energy it needs for heating, hot water, light and household appliances. This is possible by using:
  • New technologies such as prefabricated facades, and
  • Offsite manufactured components, such as smart heating and cooling installations or insulated rooftops equipped with solar panels.
• The homes developed under this initiative have a long-life guarantee for both the energy performance and indoor climate.
• With the retrofitting being financed through the saving in energy bills and reduced repairs it aims to ensure tenants have the same monthly expenses. Housing associations can add in new income streams to pay for the retrofitting and tenants will pay the associations a energy service plan for their homes.
• Currently the model is being launched in the social housing sector in the UK. The initiative’s‘Destination Zero’ is a collaboration with Nottingham City Homes and Nottingham City Council which aims to test the ability to achieve net zero homes in line with asset management strategies and is funded by BEIS (now DESZN – the Department for Energy Security and NetZero).
• In order to use this initiative a group of housing organisations need to come together to make a ‘first market’ whilst regulations are amended to allow for the large-scale work to occur.Financial institutions will evaluate this approach and provide affordable financing options to the homeowners.
• Other retrofit programmes include:
• Lancaster West refurbishment programme carried out by the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea to retrofit 795 domestic buildings;
  • Cornwall Council Whole House Retrofit Innovation project, a £4.2 million program to retrofit council-owned domestic buildings; and
  • Yorkshire Council boiler replacements and insulation programmes on council-owned domestic buildings.

Sources Used in this Publication:

• https://www.londoncouncils.gov.uk/our-key-themes/climate-change/retrofit-london-programme
• https://www.londoncouncils.gov.uk/our-key-themes/climate-change
• https://www.campbelltickell.com/2022/05/01/retrofit-london-implementation-plan/
• https://www.greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/what-we-do/environment/homes-workplaces-and-public-buildings/retrofitgm/
• https://www.building.co.uk/focus/bes-birmingham-or-bust/5078012.article
• https://www.yesenergysolutions.co.uk/news/birmingham-energy-savers-scheme-closes
• https://www.local.gov.uk/case-studies/cornwall-council-whole-house-retrofit-innovation-project
• https://www.local.gov.uk/lga-libdem-group/our-press-releases/retrofit-programmes-city-york-council
• https://www.local.gov.uk/case-studies/kensington-chelsea-lancaster-west-refurbishment
• https://energiesprong.org/
• https://www.campbelltickell.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Retrofit-London-Implementation-Plan.pdf

This article is for general awareness only and does not constitute legal or professional advice. The law may have changed since this page was first published. If you would like further advice and assistance in relation to any of the issues raised in this article, please contact us today by telephone or email enquiries@sharpepritchard.co.uk.