Insulated Social Housing Could Save Tenants £700m Yearly

Research has suggested that social housing residents could see their heating bills slashed by 42 per cent if their homes were insulated and draught-proofed, saving £700 million a year in total. Housing Industry Leaders looks at how social landlords could plan ahead for large-scale retrofitting.

The National Housing Federation (NHF) has said that a family in social housing with an EPC of D or below spends an average of £1,343 a year on heating, based on the current energy price guarantee.

It means that this would reduce by 42 per cent to £776 a year if these homes were insulated and brought up to an EPC of C or above. This equates to more than £700 million a year in savings. The calculation is based on an analysis of heating cost figures from the English Housing Survey and EPC data published by the UK Government.

Social Landlords Could Plan Large-scale Retrofitting

Poorly insulation homes are one of the UK’s biggest environmental polluters and have become a major culprit in the cost-of-living crisis, the NHF has said.

Three-quarters of social housing residents currently rely on benefits and a large number of families are at risk of falling into poverty or debt because of the increased energy costs, it added.

Now, the NHF is calling on the UK Government to release the full £3.8 billion pledge by 2030 to decarbonise social housing, of which about £1 billion has been committed. In addition to this, it says that this would enable social landlords to plan ahead for large-scale retrofitting.

Decarbonising Social Homes Is A Win-win Solution

Chief Executive, Kate Henderson said: “Whilst the Government’s energy price guarantee is welcome support for now, it is not enough to protect people living in the least energy efficient homes from astronomic price increases, with some social tenants losing as much as two months’ pay on energy costs and forced to make impossible choices – such as risking getting into debt – to afford basic living costs.

“Looking ahead to April 2023, without well-targeted means-tested support, social housing residents will be facing an even more extraordinary burden.”

Decarbonising social homes is a win-win solution, and the faster it can be done, the greater the benefits for residents and the environment.

Kate has called on the government to prioritise retrofitting social homes as a “long-term solution to the energy, cost-of-living and climate crises.”