15,000 council homes turn super energy efficient to tackle fuel poverty and cut carbon emissions

The lives of thousands of vulnerable Haringey families will be transformed by making council homes warmer and cheaper to run.    
 
Haringey Council unveiled plans for a major energy efficiency and decarbonisation retrofit of all 15,000 council homes at a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday night.
 
The Council Housing Energy Action Plan will see the installation of measures such as external wall and loft insulation, energy efficient doors and windows, heat pumps and solar panels as part of the whole house retrofits.
 
On a mission to become a net zero carbon borough by 2041, the pioneering approach predicts a 98 per cent reduction in carbon emissions from council homes by 2038.
 
As well as dramatically reducing each households’ carbon footprint, average heating bills could be reduced by 28 per cent – tackling ever increasing energy costs caused by the cost-of-living crisis and offering tenants more financial freedom. 
 
Cllr Dana Carlin, Cabinet Member for Housing Services, Private Renters and Planning, said:

This ambitious programme is a major step forward in our efforts to end fuel poverty.  Energy bills will be dramatically reduced, which is fantastic news for residents struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.  
 
Thousands of Haringey families will benefit from a secure future in a warm, healthy, comfortable and affordable home.
 
By retrofitting all council homes, we are not only transforming the lives of families across the borough, but we are also creating new, high-skilled jobs in our community and supporting the green economy.
 
 

Cllr Mike Hakata, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Climate Action, Environment and Transport, said:

This hugely ambitious project is critically important in delivering a carbon neutral borough by 2041.  Housing accounts for half of Haringey’s emissions. With council homes comprising 17 per cent of all housing, our plan will have a significant impact in reducing these emissions.
 
As with all council programmes aimed at tackling climate change this plan has multiple co-benefits, including reducing the energy bills of low-income families, improving indoor air quality as well as dovetailing with our drive to continue to build a local skills base and invest in our local supply chain and economy.
 

Under the initial 2023-28 plan, around 1,500 homes will benefit each year from the upgrade with those most in need targeted first.
 
More than £100m has so far been set aside for this project, with additional bids for funding to be made to the government’s Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund.      
 
The council owns about 17 per cent of the borough’s total housing stock, with council homes amounting to approximately 7-8 per cent of Haringey’s carbon emissions.