NHC comment on Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards consultation
We’ve submitted our response the Government’s consultation on the proposed new Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards. Thank you to all members who input into our response.
Northern Housing Consortium Chief Executive Tracy Harrison said:
“The social housing sector in the North is leading the way with energy efficiency, with 62 per cent of social housing homes meeting the current EPC C. Our members are committed to continuing this journey towards Net Zero.
“To support our members to efficiently implement the new Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards, and other new housing quality legislation including the new Decent Homes Standard and Awaab’s Law, the requirements must be co-ordinated to address any discrepancies. Confirmation of all directly related legislation and standards, such as the new EPC assessment criteria, is also needed as soon as possible to allow providers to plan their work programmes.
“In our consultation response, we argued that a fabric performance metric by 2030 is the only practical option that reflects the reality of the existing supply chain and can be implemented within current business plans. It will provide firm foundations to bring in additional heating system and smart readiness metrics later. Our engagement with social housing providers suggested the cost associated with these other metrics would increase the number of homes which are likely to be exempt, and supply chain issues could hamper roll out.
“We support the proposed 10-year £10,000 spend exemption for homes where it is not economically viable to bring them up to EPC C. Time-limited concessions based on cost are essential to avoid loss of social housing, before replacement homes can be provided, or uneconomic investment in hard-to-treat properties that breaches value-for-money criteria from the Social Housing Regulator. Lower rents and property values in the North mean this a particularly important issue for our members.”
You can read the full consultation response here.
