Where housing associations need to focus to meet the new mandatory standard on retrofitting dwellings

1. Ensure asset data management systems are up to date

Clauses have been included to facilitate scale retrofit at pace by allowing retrofit designs to commence based on assessment of archetypes. This, combined with a solid base of asset data, will enable retrofit designs to be finalised much earlier in the programme.

To enable meaningful and productive design archetyping, organisations’ internal asset data needs to be up to date and sufficiently detailed to allow an accurate picture of dwelling health to be created.

This will enable existing issues to be picked up and factored into designs, to be addressed either before or as part of the retrofit installation. This will, in turn, allow for better cost certainty, ensuring cost escalation and associated time delays are avoided.

2. Expect changes to EPCs

The government consultation on reform of Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) closed in February, and updates could be expected later next year. Given that this will be within the lifetimes of many projects, housing associations need to take into account the proposed changes outlined in the consultation, particularly when it comes to fabric measures.

To achieve the target imposed by the funding criteria for the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (the previous name of the WH:SHF), many organisations installed photovoltaic panels to achieve an EPC rating of Band C, despite the PAS 2035 emphasis on fabric measures first. With the expected changes to EPCs, these properties may no longer achieve a C.

In addition, the cost of maintaining solar panels will add a further burden to already stretched planned-maintenance budgets. With the cost of materials going up, delaying fabric measures could be significantly more expensive than undertaking them in a measured and systematic approach now.

3. Navigate reduced budgets 

The recent Wave 3 funding announcements confirmed a smaller amount of money than applicants had bid for. As a result, some housing associations are now reprofiling their portfolios to account for a reduced budget.

With Awaab’s Law coming into force in October, landlords need to think strategically about their budgets to ensure funding streams provide maximum impact, addressing multiple issues in one go. This is easier said than done, but damp and mould issues and fuel poverty can both be eliminated through deep retrofit approaches.

While government funding may cover less than 50% of the cost of deep retrofit, internal cross-funding and robust project management principles will allow landlords to address both issues comprehensively.

4. Ensure supply chain readiness and quality

Recent news articles have highlighted poorly installed external wall insulation and the highly damaging consequences. The PAS 2035:2023 better defines qualifications, activities and outputs of retrofit coordinators and other retrofit roles, before and during installation on site.

This is a step in the right direction, but it is essential that the entire supply chain and retrofit sector work together to upskill and provide the right oversight to ensure insulation failures are a thing of the past.

5. Integrate retrofitting into business as usual

Housing associations need to look beyond individual funding cycles in order to integrate retrofit projects into business as usual, alongside planned cyclical maintenance work and reactive repair. With the industry at the start of many years of retrofit programmes, we need to reflect on and assimilate lessons from previous projects routinely. 

The latest PAS 2035 update, potentially one of many to come, has already integrated some key learnings. To progress at pace in the right direction, we need the right targets, the requisite skills and a solid quality assurance infrastructure. Wave 3 will require all these to be in place, and more.

Irina Leigh, senior architect and sustainability consultant, McBains