The UK is driving £3.5bn of investment into ‘warm homes’ over the next three years, aiming to transform over 350,000 UK homes. In this blog, Vicky Wilding, Head of Green Technology and Services, explores the value of the retrofit market and the opportunities for installers and tradespeople.
Homes are responsible for 17 per cent of UK emissions and the UK has some of the least energy efficient housing stock in Europe. The UK Green Building Council estimates that 29 million homes need to be retrofitted in order to meet the net zero 2050 target; this means we must rethink how we heat, light and power our homes, improve how efficiently they retain heat, and generate renewable energy locally and via the grid to reduce carbon and other greenhouse gas emissions.
The good news is that many of the technologies we need to deliver this already exist and have made their way into UK homes. As of 2024, just over 280,000 homes have had a heat pump installed, and roughly 1.4 million homes have been fitted with solar installations. The expanding market for energy efficiency boasts new opportunities for the entire green supply chain, with prospects for energy assessors and green retrofitters.
The domestic retrofit market will need more than half a million skilled practitioners to deliver a range of services that will assess existing housing stock, identify the specific solution for each property, and then install and maintain those products to ensure ongoing effectiveness.
This isn’t a new area of investment from central government, with schemes like the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, Local Authority Delivery Scheme, Great British Insulation Scheme and Eco4 offering a range of support and funding to homeowners. The new Warm Home’s plan will ramp up funding to be allocated via local authorities to retrofit five million homes over the next five years and lift over one million households out of fuel poverty. This is in addition to funds for retrofitting rented and continuing schemes to upgrade social housing properties, with a key purpose to improve the EPC rating of properties to band C or above.
This is already coming to fruition with our partners in local government prioritising conversations about how to encourage or incentivize homeowners and landlords to retrofit their properties and integrate green technologies that will deliver long term carbon savings. In Greater Manchester the ‘Feel the Benefit’ campaign has been offering residents a free consultation with an energy efficiency review, and connections to local funding and has reached almost 35,000 people.
In West Yorkshire, a similar Warm Homes grant is helping people to access energy efficiency measures, providing funding for interventions like boiler upgrades, insulation improvements and even solar PVs at a reduced, or no, cost to the end-user. Across the country, it is clear that local governments are prioritising retrofitting of existing housing stock.
With so many schemes now operating throughout England, it is vital that local suppliers of energy efficiency reviews and installers of renewable technologies are aware of these programmes, ensuring that qualified, local experts are delivering these projects. If you’re based in West Yorkshire and not currently providing renewable energy solutions, you may be eligible to attend our free ‘Solar Installer Accelerator’ programme – you can find out more information and book your place here.
A key challenge for the green technologies supply chain is finding out about schemes that help their customers access their services. The different schemes and funding can be challenging to navigate for homeowners and green tech suppliers alike. In addition, businesses need to manage fluctuating demand and collaborate with other local partners to provide integrated solutions and seamless customer service to their clients.
At Green Economy we help businesses to manage their sales pipeline, providing a regular stream of new sales opportunities for your business, along with an increased online presence, whilst helping our network to understand the latest frameworks and business schemes ensuring you’re able to focus on delivering high quality for your customers. In addition, members can join networking events to meet and collaborate with other local businesses in the sector.
It’s quick and simple to join online and get your profile on our Marketplace ready to start winning new business. Click here to find out more.
Green Technologies & Services Lead
Vicky manages a team of advisors, delivering award-winning sector support for the Green Economy team. She has over 10 years' experience supporting businesses across the low carbon and environmental goods and services (LCEGS) sector and has an esoteric understanding of barriers to growth, offering reactive advice about the challenges facing the green sector.
With a combined Master’s degree in Town and Country planning with Landscape Planning Management, Vicky understands that places need to be developed in a sustainable way that is inclusive of entire communities.
Vicky is part of the Green Economy team because she wants to build client relationships and continue her involvement in a transformative sector that progresses social and environmental goals for future generations.
