We have been named the Best Landlord/Housing Association at the South West Energy Efficiency Awards for the steps we are taking on our journey to Net Zero.
We have a clear responsibility to our customers and the environment in providing the best homes we can alongside working hard to see how we can reduce the carbon footprint of our customers’ homes.
One of the steps we are taking is to improve the energy efficiency of our homes to meet a minimum EPC rating of ‘C’ by 2028 – two years ahead of the government’s target.
The longer-term plan is to be Net Carbon Zero by 2050 as we seek to play our part in protecting the planet for current and future generations.
Tim Wotton, our Green Funding Manager, said: “We are really honoured to have received this award and humbled that our work is being recognised.
“LiveWest is at the beginning of our journey to Net Zero, but this is a great recognition of all the hard work that our staff, partners and funders have put into our trailblazing retrofit work.
“During what is a very difficult time for many of our customers, we hope this shows that LiveWest is committed to creating greener, more efficient and affordable housing.”
Our Creating Greener Futures Together home improvement Trailblazer project is a £2m investment which will see more than 300 homes become more energy efficient over the nine months.
It is part of our overall investment of around £40m to bring 9,000 of our rental homes up to EPC Band C.
Owning more than 39,000 homes and supporting 80,000 customers, our fabric first approach has already resulted in installation projects taking place and an upgrade to insulation, doors and windows amongst homes across the South West.
We are also introducing solar panels and installing new heating systems as part of our drive to future proof our homes.
The new measures will help to tackle fuel poverty and meet the Committee on Climate Change’s target to have 29 million existing homes in the UK to become low carbon by 2050.
We have also secured £2m of government funding to improve the energy performance of our homes under the government’s Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF).
The government recently named the 69 local authorities who have made successful bids for some of the £179m made available in the SHDF wave 1 funding.
LiveWest was delighted that both bids we were part of were successful – one with Plymouth City Council (who were awarded £1m of which LiveWest will benefit from over £600k of funding) and one with the South West Energy hub hosted by the West of England Combined Authority (who were awarded £4.7m of which LiveWest will benefit from over £1.3m).
Elsewhere, we have teamed up with Cornwall Council and the National Trust for a feasibility project to assess whether Cornwall’s abandoned mines have the potential to heat homes.
The project has been awarded £67,000 from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) to explore the potential for sustainable energy from warm water in flooded abandoned mines.
Each organisation has pledged an additional £11,000 to the project, which is being carried out at Geevor, Levant and Botallack mines near Pendeen.
Rory Henderson, our Strategic Manager for Net Zero, said: “Sustainable homes, neighbourhoods and communities are at the heart of our commitment to deliver a home for everyone.
“Our principal focus is around increasing the energy efficiency of our homes, reducing our carbon footprint and improving our customers’ lives.
“The award is testament to the hard work of all involved, especially our partners Community Home Solutions, City Energy and the South West Net Zero Hub.”