This year we have hit the ground running. We have already delivered 16 HERO Plans and therefore made great progress towards overall financial and carbon savings. See below our calculated savings if each household were to go ahead with the retrofit measures we recommended:

Combined CO2 savings = 74.78tCO2 / year
Combined fuel bill savings = £27,580 / year

These CO2 savings are equivalent to 15.1 cars being taken off the road each year and 23.5 tons of waste being recycled rather than landfilled. It would also take 80.9 acres of forest to offset this output each year, showing just how impactful retrofit can be.
 

As of April this year, the energy price cap in Great Britain is due to fall to the lowest it’s been in 2 years: £1,690. Ofgem defines the energy price cap as the maximum amount of energy suppliers can charge for each unit of energy if you’re on a standard variable tariff. 

The energy crisis we’re seeing today began back in 2021 and was worsened by the war in Ukraine, which saw Russia halt the piping of gas into Europe. This cost of living crisis we’re facing today will potentially improve further during the summer quarter, where experts expect the cap to fall again, down to £1,462. 

This current fall is firstly due to a milder winter across Europe, decreasing the demand for energy. Meanwhile, an abundance of liquified natural gas in Europe and Asia has seen some financial relief for households. While this is clearly a positive for everyone leaving behind the colder months and steeper expenses, it is much still higher than the price cap of summer 2021, before the energy crisis ensued (£1,138). 

Ofgem have publicly recognised this issue, with the Chief Executive stating “There are still big issues that we must tackle head-on to ensure we build a system that’s more resilient for the long term and fairer to customers.” And also goes on to recognise that adjusting the energy price cap will likely benefit those who are vulnerable and struggling the most. However, the National Energy Action group, of whom we are closely tied, suggest that such an adjustment will not stop 6 million households being “trapped in fuel poverty”. As much as this is a step in the right direction, more must be done to alleviate the issues we are current facing up and down the country.

Clair Coutinho described the price fall as a “milestone” and also regarded that £10 million will be invested in testing new technologies in order to “make the most of cheap, low-carbon power.” Although this is undoubtedly good news, we still stand firm that slightly improved conditions and menial investments is not enough to move towards a Net Zero future where residents are able to comfortably afford their energy bills.
 

The Clean Heat Market Mechanism (CHMM) was first introduced by the government, at the beginning of 2024, to encourage the uptake of heat pumps, in place of gas boilers. This mandatory requirement sees that a minimum amount of heat pumps (4%) are installed in place of and in proportion to their installing of boiler systems. For every heat pump the manufacturer falls short of their target, they will be charged £3,000. A credit system will be in place to earn 1 credit for every heat pump installed, should the manufacturer fall short of their target, they can purchase credits from a non-obligated manufacturer who does not install boilers; a hybrid installation will earn half a credit. 

For boiler companies, the CHMM means potentially running the risk of paying a hefty sum in fines if they do not meet their target. To compensate for these fines, manufacturers are pre-emptively raising their prices for installing new heating systems, which in turn may damage not only their customer interest, but also their reputation in the long run. 

For consumers, this creates a host of issues. Firstly, for those homeowners who are encouraged to install a heat pump, they will face a higher bill than those opting for a gas boiler. Customers will also be burdened by the compensatory raise in prices by the manufacturer, which during the energy crisis we face today, worsen an already difficult situation. Finally, just to add insult to injury, the customer must contend with the fact that the manufacturer is not only benefitting from this raise in price, but also the fact that they are reaching their target and therefore not being fined. It should also be noted that heat pump manufacturers may benefit from other companies purchasing credits in order to negate said fines. Overall, it feels as though the government is indirectly squeezing more money out of the already struggling household.

Resolutions have been called for, which include fairer targets given the current market, and more transparency when it comes to who is benefitting from this new scheme. Do you believe this is a step in the right direction for Net Zero?
 

The Minister for Energy and Green Finance has recently accused certain groups (who remain unnamed) of funding “campaigns of misinformation” against heat pumps, due to their “vested interest in maintaining our current supply of gas boilers”. He went on to suggest most of the slander is either a myth or completely nonsensical.

For example, one such myth is that heat pumps do not work in cold weather, which is entirely not true as we know that they still function at temperatures around -20 degrees Celsius. Another is that heat pumps are noisy and imposing, but for homeowners and surrounding residents, no such complaints have been made, with some advocating for permitted development restrictions to be removed. Finally, there is the concern that heat pumps are far more expensive than the average gas boiler, however given the £7,500 BUS grant on offer, and schemes ran by the Cosy Octopus, the financial burden of a heat pump has been significantly lessened.

Although gas boiler representatives reject any such accusations, heat pumps do tend to face an unprecedented amount of discrimination, and these types of widespread public opinions do not grow legs by themselves.
 

The MCS Foundation commissioned a YouGov poll that revealed that 79% of MPs support making solar panels mandatory on all new-build homes by 2025. This is encouraging and positive news for the UK’s future homes and our mission to reach Net Zero. However, this may leave current homeowners asking, is my home solar suitable?
 
Solar Photovoltaics cells (solar PV) convert light from the sun into electricity, allowing homeowners to produce their own clean energy. Solar PV performs optimally when facing South, at a 30-to-40-degree angle and unshaded. However, if your home can’t present these perfect conditions, solar PV could still be for you. According to the Energy Saving Trust, a solar PV system facing East or West will yield around 15-20% less energy than one facing directly South. Therefore, South-West or South-East facing roofs are still suitable for solar PV. Similarly, solar PV can be secured at an angle between 20 and 50 degrees and experience some shading and can still generate a reasonable amount of electricity. According to the National Energy Action, shading experienced outside 10 am and 4 pm has a minimal effect on power output. However, shading between 10 am and 4 pm sometimes cannot be avoided. In this case, microinverters can be used instead of a single inverter, to help mitigate the decrease in power output caused by some shading.
 
Now, fixing solar PV panels to the roof is not an option for every homeowner. Maybe their roof is flat or north-facing or too fragile to support the load of the solar PV panels. Luckily, there are other options. Solar PV panels can be mounted on a free-standing frame at the optimum angle, to put on top of a flat roof or in the garden. Additionally, solar PV panels can be secured to the roof of a shed or designed to act as a canopy above a car parking space. Solar PV can even be in the form of solar tiles that replace roof tiles, that can cover the whole roof or be integrated with matching conventional roof tiles.
 
Lastly, the suitability of solar PV to the UK’s weather is often questioned. However, solar PV still generates electricity on cloudy days! The rain also helps to keep the solar PV clean, avoiding the build of dirt and debris, which if left on the solar PV could lead to a decrease in power output.
 
When suitable, solar PV is a great way to ensure a home is powered by clean energy and put the power of energy generation in the homeowner's hands!
 
 

 It can be very disheartening and disempowering when our government postpone and drop climate pledges or even worse, grant licences for new oil and gas fields, which mean we are locked into fossil fuels well beyond 2050. Coupled with the mounting pollution in land, sea and air and collapsing biodiversity, one can feel there is little hope. 

However, there are increasing numbers of us are deeply concerned about the environment and want to act and there is much that we can do personally.

So here are ten top tips to reduce are impact on our planet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Follow all these tips and you will easily knock a few thousand tons off your annual carbon production.  

 

 

If you’re feeling inspired to look at the carbon footprint of your property, getting a Retrofit Plan is the first step to take. Head to our ‘SuperHomes Plans’ page on our website to find out more.