Decarbonisation pilot project

Our Energy Project Manager Sam Batt talks about the project and what it means for our tenants and our organisation.

Latest updates and information

April 2022

This month we have continued to complete the retrofit works. This has included the commissioning  of solar panels and supporting roof works. We hope to have the majority of the major works completed in May. This will enable us to remove the scaffolding so that we can finish completing the insulation below the damp proof course.

March 2022

Work continued at the site in March. As we complete the installation of the External Wall Insulation, we were able to render the external walls. This has completely transformed the properties, refreshing the way they look on the outside as well as helping to prevent heat loss through external walls. Work also began on installing the solar panels.

February 2022

This month we’ve been looking at the roofs of all the properties involved in the project. We’ve taken the decision to install solar panels in addition to the air source heat pumps and other energy saving features, which should help reduce the amount of energy needed to run these homes even further. In preparation for the installation of these, we’ve carried out additional work to ensure that the roofs can support the PV panels.

Alongside this, we’ve submitted a bid for additional funding to run a similar project in more of our properties so we can make improvements for even more tenants over the coming months.

January 2022

As work continued at the site, you’ll start to see changes to the outside of the homes involved in the project. We’ve been installing external wall insulation (EWI) to help reduce heat loss through the fabric of the building. To finish this off, the homes have been rendered making them look very different from before. Preparation work has also continued across the site as we continue to safely remove asbestos and complete other external changes that will allow us to install the EWI, new heating systems and other energy reducing features.

December 2021

Work has continued at the site, and we’ve been busy installing new windows, moving drainage and removing asbestos from some of the properties. Almost three quarters of the enabling work has now been completed, which leaves the heavier more work intensive jobs to be completed. 

November 2021

This month we were able to start the enabling works at the site in Blakeney. Tenants will have seen scaffolding go up around the properties and we have been busy completing the initial works on the outside of our homes. We also started the retrofit work at one of the properties.

October 2021

This month has been about finalising the supply chain and making decisions on the products and contractors we will use to complete the retrofit. We’ve also been checking the design work and making sure that the planning application needed is in place.

September 2021

September saw the completion of the final design work for each of the homes.

We also signed contracts with Bristol-based gcp Architects to head-up the design and support the delivery of the project. They will work with VOR Group to ensure that the project meets the correct standards for PAS2035.

We’ve looked at the design and calculated the reduction in carbon emissions that can be achieved with the improvements. We expect to see carbon emissions reduce by at least 45% once the work has been completed.

August 2021

August has been a busy month. Our Energy Project Manager Sam Batt took our partners and representatives from Ricardo, the company leading the government’s domestic decarbonisation projects on a tour of the site.

We also undertook some initial investigation works, to see if the proposed heating systems will work the building types and delivered our first project newsletter to tenant’s involved in the project.

July 2021

In July, we continued to develop the retrofit designs and used these to submit a planning application for permission to make the changes to the homes involved.

Our Energy Project Manager Sam has also started training to become a qualified Retrofit Co-ordinator. This means that we will have the capability to manage similar projects ourselves in the future.

June 2021

In June 2021, we started preliminary survey work at the properties. This included testing the airtightness of the properties, thermographic images and taking measurements throughout the homes.

All of this work will help us create a design that will deliver the best results for our tenants and the properties.

May 2021

Working with Worcestershire Wildlife Consultancy, we undertook an ecological survey to make sure that the proposed work wouldn’t have a negative impact on the local environment or wildlife.

April 2021

Two Rivers Housing wrote to tenants inviting them to take part in the project and explaining what it would mean for them and their homes.

Two Rivers Housing signed a contract with Switchee to supply SMART Thermostats. These will be installed at the properties and will monitor the homes performance both before, during and after the work has been completed. This will enable us to show the difference the retrofit work has made in our homes. 

Find out more about Switchee.

March 2021

The funding bid was successful, and Two Rivers Housing secured £500,000 in government grants to undertake its pilot project. Work began on identifying the properties and tenants that would be invited to take part in the project and procurement of relevant contractors began.

Read the full story here.

November 2020

Two Rivers Housing submitted a joint bid with Stroud District Council and Cheltenham Borough Homes to secure funding from the Department of Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) to run a retrofit pilot project in a small number of homes across Gloucestershire.