North of England contractor, Esh Construction, has commenced work on its first social housing retrofit scheme following the launch of its dedicated retrofit division at the end of 2022.
Working in partnership with Thirteen Group, energy efficient upgrades will be delivered in around 60 homes in the Primrose Hill area of Stockton. The £1.8 million scheme aims to help residents save on their energy usage and drive down carbon emissions.
Taking a fabric first approach, retrofit work will include door and window replacement, installing and upgrading insulation, while ensuring there is appropriate ventilation to reduce the risk of condensation.
Esh’s head of retrofit solutions, Lisa Stafford, said: “Commencing work on our first retrofit project is a significant milestone for our specialist retrofit division, and we’re delighted to be continuing our successful working relationship with Thirteen.
“We are a TrustMark-accredited contractor and have acquired the knowledge and processes of the PAS2030 and PAS2035 standards as part of the accreditation process, both of which are required by the Government to be an eligible installer.”
These improvements are part of Thirteen’s strategy to have all its homes with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of C by 2030 and meet the government’s net-zero ambitions by 2050.
Thirteen’s executive director of assets Paul Jenkins said: “We know that older homes like these are much less energy efficient, so retrofitting them with improved windows, doors and insulation will make a big difference in helping to improve the energy efficiency and reduce the carbon footprint of our homes.
“This is our second project of this kind, but the first for the Stockton area. We’re carrying out small pilots of up to one hundred homes and installing a range of sensors and technology which will help us to understand the impact this is having on the homes and on our customers’ experience.
“It’s great to see another project underway and we are already planning further investment as we look to scale the retrofit of our existing homes.”
The scheme is benefitting from funding by the Government’s Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, which was set up to support the installation of energy performance measures in social housing properties.
Esh has committed to delivering a raft of social value initiatives to maximise the benefit for the local community, including offering work experience placements and apprentice training opportunities, providing donations to local causes and procuring a local supply chain.
The scheme was procured via Prosper’s Retrofit and Decarbonisation framework, which facilitates low carbon retrofit programmes in the residential and non-residential sectors across the North East.
