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How retrofit impacts tenants

Paul Richards explains how a research project is giving Orbit insight into tenant reactions to energy-efficiency work on their homes, and helping to guide the landlord’s programme of retrofits

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How retrofit impacts tenants - @PaulROrbit explains

In May 2021, we gathered the views of 900 customers to help us understand our social rented households’ priorities around the net-zero carbon agenda, as well as to examine what matters to them in relation to their environment. The study was jointly produced with the Chartered Institute of Housing and was one of the first in-depth pieces of work of its kind, which provided an insight into our customers’ thinking about net-zero carbon.

“Customers identify trust, detailed information and customer service as the most critical factors in ensuring a positive retrofit experience”

This study was used in direct correlation with our own plans for cutting our carbon footprint to produce a research report with the University of Leeds that assessed how our customers will be directly affected, both during and following the completion of retrofitting works.

We found that, throughout the retrofit programme, customers identify trust, detailed information and customer service as the most critical factors in ensuring a positive retrofit experience. Without customer motivation and the ability to change their behaviour within their homes, the success of the retrofit programme will be limited. It is essential that everything is done to support and engage customers throughout the retrofit process, and gain understanding of the buy-in of the behavioural changes required.


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We’ve learnt that customer behaviour is already changing in line with efficiency principles, particularly in the context of thermal comfort, but there is scope for customers to continue to improve their energy-saving behaviour. Continued communication efforts will be needed to break away from the preferences of traditionally heated homes and further research is needed to better understand how to empower customers to manage thermal comfort in a retrofitted home.

“Women, young families with children and older people tend to have more of an interest in decarbonisation and the benefits attributed to home energy-efficiency improvements”

However, decreasing energy affordability poses a significant risk. Households spending more of their household income on energy bills have less capacity or interest in being energy efficient to save money or to be environmentally friendly. This presents a potential barrier to the success of the retrofit programme if we fail to consider our customers’ interest and preparedness to adopt retrofit works. These customers are more likely to be single-parent households or young families, which may have more immediate priorities preventing them from accessing support, or caring about environmental agendas.

On the other hand, certain customers, such as women, young families with children and older people, tend to have more of an interest in decarbonisation and the benefits attributed to home energy-efficiency improvements.

Many risks identified in the research can be mitigated through customer engagement in the pre-works stage of the retrofit process and a thorough assessment of the property’s condition. This early engagement is just as, if not more, important than engagement at latter stages (during and post-works).

“We must connect the climate crisis and, more specifically, net-zero carbon homes to our customers’ personal needs and challenges”

Similarly, lessons from previous retrofit projects suggest that more effective handover processes determine how customers engage with the retrofit programme. Likewise, more organised repair processes determine how customers benefit from the retrofit works and trust their housing provider to maintain their properties to meet their needs. It is this trust between the housing provider and its customers that will significantly impact on whether there will be a positive or negative retrofit experience.

We must connect the climate crisis and, more specifically, net-zero carbon homes to our customers’ personal needs and challenges. Situational and demographic differences play a key role, and communication around the retrofit approach must be tailored to individuals’ motivations to support changes in behaviour.

Customers are more likely to value the works and overcome disruption if they have a personal interest and care for the tangible outcomes.

Paul Richards, group director of customer and communities, Orbit

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Join us on 24 March 2022 at the second annual Retrofit Challenge Summit, which will equip you with knowledge to fund, plan, procure and deliver retrofit projects at pace, at scale and right first time.

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