Retrofit is a system. And like any complex system, it doesn’t fit neatly into boxes. That’s something we’ve felt strongly at the National Retrofit Hub as we’ve supported our six working groups, each focused on a different part of the retrofit landscape.
From the start, we wanted to make sure ideas and learning flowed between the groups. It didn’t take long for themes to start bubbling up that clearly crossed boundaries. Some showed up in two or three groups. Others came up in all six. That was our cue to act, to create space for those cross-cutting conversations to happen.
Back in April, we shared the progress of all six working groups at our open meeting and introduced six cross-cutting themes we felt needed attention. We’re sharing them again here as those strands of work begin to take shape, and we would love to invite you to get involved.
The six themes are:
- EPCs & Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards
- Community Retrofit
- Heritage and Whole Life Carbon
- Place-Based Approaches
- Financing Outcomes & Impact
- Procurement
At the open meeting, we asked attendees to vote for the three themes they most wanted to explore in more depth. EPCs & Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards, Community Retrofit, and Financing Outcomes & Impact came out on top.
So what’s been happening since?
Work around EPCs and MEES is already underway. Back in November 2024, we published a paper on what the industry needs from EPC reform, and convened over 100 people across a series of 3 workshops to build consensus for this paper and respond to the EPC reform consultation. We’ve hosted two stakeholder workshops on MEES, brought together voices across the system, submitted a response to the MEES consultation, and just this week released a report shaped by those conversations. We’re now turning to the wider supporting infrastructure that will be essential for MEES to succeed, including enforcement, tenant protections, and quality assurance. We’re also preparing a response to the consultation on MEES in Scotland.
Meanwhile, we’ve identified theme coordinators for both Community Retrofit and Financing Outcomes & Impact. We’ll be sharing more about the Community Retrofit leads and an invitation to get involved very soon. We’ve also welcomed a new programme partner who’ll be supporting the Procurement theme and are already in conversation with others interested in coordinating that work.
This is an exciting time and as ever we are as strong as our network, and that’s you. We are grateful for your continued support and interaction with us and the mission to enable the local and equitable delivery of retrofit at scale.
If any of these themes resonate with you, we would love to hear from you.
Cross-cutting theme questions, taken from Open Meeting miro. These will be developed as we set up each CCT.
- EPCs & Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards
Will the proposed changes to MEES deliver the health, fuel poverty and comfort outcomes needed for renters?
How can retrofit in the Private Rental Sector be incentivised to ensure rental homes meet carbon, health and fuel poverty targets?
How can we build consumer awareness, trust, and citizen demand?
- Community Retrofit
How can community organisations be supported to play an active role in determining and supporting retrofit?
- Heritage & Whole Life Carbon
Flipping the script: Traditional & Heritage Buildings to lead the approach – incorporating biobased, local materials, building physics, whole life carbon considerations.
- Place-Based Approaches
How could place-informed decision making be used to ensure low running costs, healthy indoor environments, ethical supply chains, and a resilient grid are achieved as part of the journey towards Net Zero? How does the Net Zero Carbon Building Standard support this ambition?
How can we unlock the opportunities of devolution to drive retrofit that meets local needs?
How can LAEP’s enable an Outcomes-led Approach to heat decarbonisation ensuring a technology agnostic, holistic and localised approach to decarbonisation, tackling under-heating & affordability.
- (Financing) Outcomes and Impact
How can multi-source funding of the full range of retrofit benefits be enabled, and how should we ensure finance flows in a way that is just, fair, and supports the right actions for the right outcomes?
- Procurement
How can retrofit SMEs be best supported to build confidence, capacity and skill, and what needs to change in procurement to enable SME growth?
How can procurement better deliver genuine social value, enable community wealth building, and create good quality, local, skilled jobs?
