The business and community benefits of housing retrofit in Cornwall
Introduction
Cornwall Council has been awarded £1 million to retrofit an estimated 75 homes, creating decarbonised neighbourhoods. It will install external wall insulation and replace oil and gas heating with new air-source heat pumps, along with solar panels, to improve energy efficiency, reduce the carbon footprint and keep residents warm through the winter months.
To deliver the project, Cornwall Council will work with Coastline Housing Ltd. and OVO (S) Energy Solutions Ltd. It is expected to support 42 local jobs.
Contents
The business and community benefits of housing retrofit in Cornwall
Paul Beauchaine, 58, is a Senior Contracts Manager for SER SMG solutions. Straight out of school Paul went into the industry, working on external wall insulation where he has stayed for the last 30 years.
Asked whether the Social Housing Demonstrator fund had a positive impact on local business, Paul shared:
“Yes, with this funding compared to, you know, ten years ago, you can really see that our industry has got a lot bigger.
“I think with the labour shortage down here [Cornwall] there's opportunities to upskill people.
“I think Truro College are doing some stuff at the minute with, we're trying to upskill people and design retrofit courses for training people into the various trades because they can see with net zero 2030 targets and 2050 targets that this, this really is something now.”
Historically, RISE hasn’t been able to work with supply chain contractors directly. It’s because of feedback from people like Paul, that RISE introduced its supply chain support package for businesses working in construction or supplying products and systems to deliver retrofit projects. This support service has an aim of sharing retrofit knowledge and expertise, to upskill and increase capacity within the sector, with the end goal of enabling retrofit growth to meet demand. To access RISE supply chain support, you can download or share a RISE Supply Chain Advice Pack, register for a RISE Supply Chain Masterclass, or catch up on a RISE Supply Chain Masterclass-on-demand.
When asked about the wider benefits to local communities, Paul said that:
“You know, I’ve been doing this for donkey’s years and you’ll go out and work on social houses, particularly here in Cornwall, and they’re in the middle of nowhere... But I think people in these homes see that if the council is taking interest in their home, then I’ll start taking more interest too. You get that as an improvement, as a back benefit of it all.
“what we’re doing with these houses, we are adding a life expectancy beyond my lifetime even. In all honesty, to these homes that maybe could have been knocked down years ago. So you know, once you’re done, you really can see the benefits. I think and if we want to talk about being green and reducing carbon emissions and even helping the planet for our kids, then, in our small little way I can see the benefits of the work we are doing here.”