In March, a coalition of groups launched the vital new ‘Retrofit For the Future’ campaign – and already, it’s making waves.
Notably, the coalition has secured a meeting with a key minister inside the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) to demand the government put renters’ and workers’ rights at the heart of a green and just transition in the housing sector.
Retrofit for the Future: a green and just transition
Fuel Poverty Action, ACORN, Greener Jobs Alliance, Medact, and the Peace & Justice Project, among others, set the ball rolling on a retrofit revolution that calls for housing fit for the future.
In particular, the campaign demands that the government direct its attention to retrofit-upgrading and improving existing homes. It argues that doing so is a key to tackling both the climate emergency and the housing crisis.
As the Canary previously explained:
In a nutshell, retrofitting is about bringing homes up to better standards of thermal efficiency. It involves updates like installing insulation, improving ventilation, and replacing gas and electric boilers with heat pumps, alongside solar panels and battery storage. Residential buildings currently account for a fifth of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions, mainly through heating, hot water, and electricity.
Meanwhile, in 2022, little over half (52%) of properties in England had Band C ratings – above the average for energy efficiency. While plenty of households in this band and above are still in fuel poverty, retrofitting could help many in less energy efficient homes.
As such, the campaign argues for three core principles that must be at the centre of this retrofit revolution:
- Accountability for retrofit work.
- A workforce skills plan.
- Protecting private renters.
Meeting with the DESNZ
The campaign called on members of the public to pen a letter to their MPs. It has provided a template letter for supporters to do so via Action Network. This issues the following demands to their representatives in parliament:
Putting residents and the workforce at the heart of retrofit – involving tenants, homeowners and construction trainees and workers in the process from start to finish.
Ensuring high-quality, accountable retrofit work – with independent assessment, strong regulation and prompt rectification and compensation when retrofit does not achieve promised results.
Building a well-trained workforce for the future – creating secure, skilled employment that contributes to a greener, fairer economy and involves the construction unions.
Protecting renters – with legislation to prevent landlords from evicting tenants or raising rents as a result of retrofit improvements.
Alongside this, Fuel Poverty Action penned a separate letter to parliamentary under-secretary of state Miatta Fahnbulleh MP. This was in response to her announcement that the DESNZ was cracking down on dodgy businesses installing poor-quality insulation.
Thanks to what the coalition describes as “a mass of support” from the public and organisations to date, the government appear to be sitting up and taking notice.
Specifically, Fahnbulleh’s office at the DESNZ has agreed to meet. So now, Fuel Poverty Action will put forward these demands directly to the government.
In the meantime, the coalition is still urging members of the public to support the letter campaign. The more who sign it, the more likely it is the government will engage with these demands.
Retrofit For the Future is making the crucial case that a livable planet, habitable homes, human health and wellbeing, are all intrinsically linked. The coalition will spell out in no uncertain terms that the Labour government must bring residents, renters, and workers along in any moves for a just and green transition in housing.
Featured image via the Canary
