The Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund
As part of the Heat and Buildings Strategy, a further £800m of funding has recently been committed as part of the second wave of the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, which will allow social landlords and social housing managers to apply for grants to carry out energy efficient upgrades to their tenants’ homes – including new heating systems, energy efficient doors and windows and upgraded insulation. With buildings and homes making up some 40% of the UK’s carbon emissions, this is a crucial part of the wider strategy to meet the UK net zero target by 2050.
As part of a wider package of measures, this will see the UK working towards a key target of ensuring all new heating systems installed in UK homes will using low-carbon technologies, for example heat pump, or support new technologies that deliver green fuel by 2035.
The initial focus is currently on properties with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of D or below, which approximately 1.6 million social houses fall into.
Some 9,000 jobs in the green energy sector are expected to be generated as result of the fund and the carbon emissions savings will be the equivalent of removing some 6,000 cars from the road each year. This ongoing investment will also produce warmer houses, lower emissions and lower energy bills for millions of people, which is more relevant than ever.
A win-win-win scenario?
For information or advice on any of the topics raised, please contact our affordable housing team.
