Lucy Bruzzone, built environment lead at the Cambridge Institute of Sustainability Leadership, discusses the factors that makes retrofitting our workplaces easier than our homes
The other morning, for the first time this year, I considered turning on the central heating. It felt early to be considering this, but my dad was coming to visit, and he has a particular dislike of cold Victorian terraced houses – like the one I live in! My cool house has been great during the hot summer months, but as temperatures outside dip, I’m reminded of what is to come.
With this in my mind, I head off to work and feel pleased that I’m working in the Entopia Building. Its Passivhaus refurbishment and MVHR (Mechanical Ventilation with Heat Recovery) system enable us to stay comfortable in both summer and winter months, using a relatively small heat pump, solar gain, and electronic heat outputs.
Keeping warm at work
Colleagues and I often discuss the temperature at work and compare it to that at home or in other offices. Whilst the facilities team are still learning how to ensure the best temperatures are achieved, and we’ve had a few highs and lows, there is a consensus that it’s a very comfortable and pleasant place to work – one of the key reasons and attractions for coming in.
Post-COVID, employers found it challenging to entice workers back to the office. While new policies requiring attendance have begun shifting this trend, refurbishing offices to higher energy-efficient specifications has been another trend supporting a return to the office. Offices, which account for 20% of non-domestic buildings in England and Wales, are at the forefront of driving a renovation and green building trend to attract talent and investment.
During a recent discussion with a Cambridge City councillor, it was highlighted that offices are all going above and beyond the requirements and are driving the sustainability agenda; however, this was not translating across to housing, where it remains a real struggle to improve performance.
So why is this happening?
Competition seems to be one of the answers – competing to both recruit and retain talent, competing for tenants as companies reduce their in-person workforces or seek more flexible and remote working options, and competing for investment as lenders increasingly factor climate resilience into their investment decisions.
Brilliant colleagues who have recently joined the organisation have cited the Entopia Building as a key factor in their decision to join us and stay on. I feel the same. After a secondment elsewhere, this building was one of the factors that drew me back, knowing I wouldn’t have to endure cold drafts or extreme heat, as I had in the older University office spaces we’d previously occupied.
But why aren’t we as discerning about the other buildings we occupy, and in particular, those we live in? Why isn’t this trend translating at the same pace to our homes? I’ve been talking to quite a few estate agents recently as I look for a new place to live – yes, I’ve decided another winter of being cold isn’t for me – and they all say that energy performance isn’t on anyone’s agenda, making very little difference to decision-making.
However, there is some data to show that the trend may be slowly shifting. Nationwide’s study last year showed that there is a price premium for properties with EPC C or above, particularly for buy-to-let properties. However, things are not moving fast enough, and we, as tenants, owners, and occupiers, are still primarily focused on location, location, location as our primary decision-making factor.
So, how do we increase competition and drive wider adoption of increased home energy efficiency? Where I work, we have set out to support and drive this change through our education, policy action and innovation for a sustainable built environment, collectively housed within the Entopia Living Lab, and we are focusing on the following:
Price and return on investment
The UK, in contrast to other countries, sees housing as an asset class rather than simply a home and as such is looking for an ROI on any investments and upgrades made. Our recent research for Cambridge City Council exploring how to scale retrofit in residential properties found that landlords were willing to renovate to improve their yields. However, so far, this has mostly focused on cosmetic upgrades rather than energy performance and comfort, and no stakeholder groups have been willing to pay for this change.
Awareness and marketing
Whilst we love to talk about the cost of housing and ROI for energy performance improvements, we don’t similarly question the cost of a new kitchen or bathroom. So how do we make energy improvements attractive to us as individuals? Better-performing buildings benefit us as individuals, our lives, our experiences, and our well-being. Using more personalised and desirable language was also a recommendation of our report to the Cambridge City Council.
Make it easier to understand and better access to tradespeople you trust
There is an endless plethora of new products, information and tradespeople offering to complete this work, and high-profile cases of failed work are off-putting. Even well-informed individuals can struggle to navigate. Leadership at a national level is needed to set quality standards and accountability, as well as an integrated framework to clearly guide residents step by step through the process. Ireland seems to be leading the way on residential retrofit uptake through a powerful combination of ambitious national policy, a dedicated delivery body and targeted local engagement.
Home retrofit needs to be a priority
Individual residents lack the knowledge and scale that exists in the commercial sector, as well as financial and policy incentives. To change this, we need a long-term strategy that builds trust, simplifies choices and drives the competition for better homes.
Residents can benefit from this, but they need help. Everyone involved in the housing sector should consider how they can create healthier, more comfortable, and better-performing homes.
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