A partnership to retrofit bungalows in Salford is cutting bills and lowering carbon emissions, providing a better quality of living for tenants, both now and in the future.

NetZero Collective supported a successful application, from progressive landlord ForHousing, for funding from the government’s Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF) in November 2021.

This formed part of a combined bid with Greater Manchester Housing Providers group through the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, securing a combined total of £10.5 million.

Advisor to the industry, NetZero Collective is working with housing associations across the country to help them to work towards government targets to hit net zero by 2050.

Now, they are joined by national property services business Liberty to carry out the c.£3 m retrofit works programme for ForHousing on 63 bungalows in Irlam, Salford, using c.£630,000 of funding from the SHDF.

New external wall and flat roof insulation will improve overall heating efficiency, thermal store hot water systems and battery storage will increase heat and electrical efficiency, and new air source heat pumps and photovoltaic solar panels will further reduce energy demand within the homes. In turn, it will reduce carbon emissions and prepare the properties for a net zero carbon future.

Mechanical ventilation with heat recovery, a system that lets fresh filtered air into a building whilst retaining heat, will improve air quality without using more energy than needed.

The work will make the properties as eco-responsible as possible and reduce the need for more updates further down the line.

Liberty, the principal contractor for the work, began on site in early October, with the full retrofit programme due to complete by the end of March 2023.

Neil Waite, NetZero Collective Director, said:

“We’re so pleased to be working in partnership with Liberty and ForHousing to retrofit and future proof these homes in Irlam. 

“The advantages that these changes bring – better housing, better air quality, and lower carbon emissions and projected lower energy bills for the tenants – are more important than ever in the current cost of living crisis. Lower energy bills will be achieved through the on-site generation of renewable energy, improved thermal efficiency of the homes and increased mechanical efficiency of the heating systems, which NetZero Collective see as vital tools in the fights against fuel poverty and climate change.”

Mark Lowe, Director of Assets and Sustainability at ForHousing, said:

“Working collaboratively with partners like NetZero Collective and Liberty is crucial to meeting the Government’s zero-carbon targets, and together we can deliver lasting change that resets how we build, retrofit and look after our homes – something we aim for as part of ForHousing’s mission to create quality homes and places.

“Our approach puts tenants at the heart of decarbonisation plans. The work on these homes in Irlam will future proof them so they can be enjoyed by tenants for many years to come.”

Ray Jones, Liberty’s Group Managing Director, said:

“We have partnered with ForHousing many times on large-scale regeneration projects and day-to-day compliance, maintenance and repairs, but this is the first time that we will be working together to tackle the cost of living crisis, and the climate change crisis, head on. 

“We’re proud to be involved in this vital decaronisation retrofit programme which brings together technical expertise from across our whole business, and I can’t wait to see the benefits it brings to the residents.”