A push to make homes warmer for less has begun in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset through a partnership between SSE Energy Solutions and Alliance Homes as SSE steps up delivery of a new government energy efficiency scheme.
Phase 2 of an External Wall Insulation (EWI) programme on the Bournville Estate, Weston-super-Mare is being part-funded by SSE through the Energy Companies Obligation (ECO). The balance of costs for necessary changes to communal areas, gas flues etc are being met by Alliance Homes.
ECO is a government energy efficiency scheme for Great Britain which replaced the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT) and the Community Energy Saving Programme (CESP) programmes at the start of 2013. It operates alongside the Green Deal and places obligations on larger domestic energy suppliers such as SSE to deliver efficiency measures with a focus on vulnerable consumer groups and hard-to-treat homes. The costs of the scheme are then passed on to customers through their energy bills.
The Bournville Estate programme will help to improve 150 properties built in the 1960s including 91 flats within three high-rise blocks and a mixture of low-rise flats and maisonettes.
Steve Hopper, Contracts Manager at SSE, said:
“The EWI installation provides very real benefits to the community; warmer homes during cold weather, improved fuel efficiency and reduced energy bills which in some cases could be up to 30-40%. The visual impact also benefits the wider community as the appearance of the properties is greatly improved.
“SSE is taking an active role in the management of Phase 2 of the EWI installation works, which presents an exciting opportunity to work closely with Alliance Homes to deliver the project on time, on budget and, above all, safely."
SSE Energy Solutions has subcontracted the job to local contractors with work already started on-site and due to be complete by the end of November 2013. Local contractors for EWI are Low Carbon Exchange and Joyner PA. Other work is to be carried out by Prolectric and Alliance Homes’ in-house Property Care Team (gas installation). Material supplier Rockwool through Westonworks is offering training and job opportunities for local unemployed people.
Steve Drew, Managing Director of Alliance Ventures, added: “Already hundreds of homes on the Bournville Estate have seen a range of improvements and this additional funding will mean that we can carry on with the programme. Tenants have told us how much warmer their homes were over the winter months.
“They have started to see savings on their heating costs and the overall look of the properties has been improved. The fact that the project has meant that we have been able to employ local people has been an added bonus.
“Our communities will also benefit from this work with CO2 emissions from our homes reducing substantially, supporting Alliance Homes’ commitment to improving the environment.”