Social landlord appoints net zero specialist to oversee large retrofit project

Net zero technology specialist, Sero, has been appointed by a leading social housing landlord to coordinate and oversee an extensive retrofitting project of 130 social homes in Cheltenham to reduce emissions and resident energy costs.

 

Cheltenham Borough Council (CBC), through Cheltenham Borough Homes (CBH), has selected Cardiff-based Sero to provide retrofit assessment and coordination services over a two-year period, following a successful funding bid under Wave 2.1 of the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF).

Under the contract Sero and partners will conduct an initial assessment of roughly 130 properties, looking at energy efficiency levels, heating and hot water services, property condition, ventilation, and occupancy among other factors. An EPC survey will be carried out as part of the assessment phase.

Following the assessment, Sero will act as the retrofit coordinator and oversee the whole process of energy efficiency improvements from design and installation, through to completion of the works. Sero will ensure all works meet the retrofit standard PAS2035 as part of the coordinator role.

The appointment of Sero comes after CBC/CBH’s successful application to the SHDF, the government’s £3.8bn funding stream aimed at supporting social housing providers with energy efficiency improvement costs.

The CBH team manages around 5,000 CBC properties which range from pre-1900 to modern day units, with the majority built after the Second World War. Sero was selected as a partner following a comprehensive tender process in which CBH noted the group’s superior presentation of Improvement Option Evaluations (IOEs) and Medium-Term Improvement Plans (MTIPs).

The SHDF was introduced in 2021 to support Registered Providers of social housing with the installation of energy performance measures across England. According to the most recent government figures, a total of £778m of grant funding was awarded to successful bidders in Wave 2.1.

Frances Crick, climate change manager at Cheltenham Borough Homes, part of Cheltenham Borough Council, said: “Retrofitting the nation’s social housing in line with net zero targets is an  important challenge for social housing groups across the country and a priority for CBC/CBH. Securing funding through the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund will go some way to helping us ensure we can retrofit our portfolio ahead of the targets set by government.

“The funding has allowed us to seek expert external input from Sero, chosen through a competitive tendering process. We look forward to working with Sero, utilizing their experience coordinating large-scale retrofit works to drive forward our retrofit projects.”

James Williams, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer at Sero, said: “We are proud to have been chosen to support Cheltenham Borough Council on its retrofit and decarbonisation journey.

“Sero has a deep understanding of what it takes to successfully run large scale retrofit projects. We are looking forward to using our experience and expertise to deliver lower emissions from the group’s housing stock while lowering bills for residents

“With the need to decarbonise the country’s housing stock as strong as ever, it is fantastic to see social housing providers setting reinforcing their commitment to this work.”