Major investment in retrofitting
The Hesters Way neighbourhood has seen 34 Cheltenham Borough Council properties undergo a £1.4 million major retrofit programme. A further 25 council homes at Cumming Court in Prestbury have undergone retrofit works and additional improvements, which are on track to be completed by next March.
The properties, managed by Cheltenham Borough Homes (CBH), have been converted into warmer, more affordable and energy efficient homes. Residents will benefit from consuming less energy which will help lower heating and cooling costs –improved environmental comforts will support personal health and wellbeing.
In October, Cheltenham Borough Council announced it would take back control of its housing stock by closing Cheltenham Borough Homes, its wholly-owned arms-length management firm.
The management of housing services will move back to the responsibility of Cheltenham Borough Council, after 20 years.
Cheltenham Borough Council to take back the management of its homes
The latest scheme at Hesters Way and Cumming Court is being delivered by CBH with an £800,000 grant funding from the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF) wave 1 and £600k funding from Cheltenham Borough Council’s housing revenue account.
This work, which supports the ambitions of Cheltenham Borough Council for Cheltenham to become net zero by 2030, is part of a programme of works to improve and decarbonise council owned homes for the benefit of residents.
Retrofitting is the refurbishment of existing homes to make them more efficient, sustainable and better for the environment, by using a fabric-first approach.
The homes now have Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) C ratings (rising on average 10 points from EPC D) and their carbon emissions have reduced by approximately one third from around 3kg to 2kg per year.
Retrofit works on the Cumming Court homes, which were previously energy inefficient, are completed and include fabric-first measures plus a number of new housing technologies:
- New double-glazed windows to retain warmth inside
- New cavity wall insulation to external and internal walls to an un-heated corridor
- Top up of insulation in loft spaces to reduce heat loss
- Installation of new ground source heat pump heating systems which have much lower carbon emissions and are more controllable than the previous direct electric based heating, which help reduce energy bills
- Installation of new efficient, ventilation system to improve internal air quality and help to minimise potential damp, mould and condensation issues.
Cllr Victoria Atherstone, Cheltenham Borough Council cabinet member for housing, said: “It’s so important we improve homes to the best of our ability, making sure we’re successful in securing grants as and when they become available, to contribute to the hefty costs associated with the decarbonisation of homes.
‘’I am really pleased to see this significant investment already made to improve these homes, helping residents to benefit from improved comfort and thermal efficiencies all year round and lower energy bills. We know our customers are still concerned about their long-term financial futures due to the rising cost of living. This fabric-first retrofit approach will certainly go some way to addressing these concerns with regard to energy costs.”
Cheltenham Borough Homes, CEO, Steve Slater, said: “I’d like to extend our thanks and gratitude to all the residents experiencing the retrofit works. We appreciate that a refurbishment project of this scale is not an easy process and we’re thankful that so many residents at Cumming Court and in the Hesters Way area have been so positive throughout the works. We are delighted that residents will benefit from the energy efficiency benefits introduced.”
More energy efficiency improvements are being made to 30 homes in Hesters Way, and further works are planned for a first phase of 40 properties in the Hatherley area. CBH have also been successful in securing SHDF wave 2.1 funding which alongside council funding will improve over 180 properties in Cheltenham.
