Works have been completed to improve the energy efficiency of 18 social homes in Lichfield managed by Trident Housing Group.
The £650k project is part of a larger project for the Matrix Housing Partnership, a consortium of seven social landlords. Having commenced in August 2024, the work has been delivered in a fast track programme to create better living conditions for residents. With a target of EPC rating C, residents of the homes can now look forward to reduced energy consumption and better performing efficiencies all round, in a more comfortable living environment.
Key improvements include stripping and insulating the front porches of the homes, installing new energy efficient windows and doors, external wall insulation (EWI) and upgrading ventilation to encourage better airflow to tackle issues such as damp and mould.
Beyond the technical upgrades, the project was built on a foundation of resident engagement and care, which is always a primary focus for us within project delivery. Recognising the potential disruption residents can face from such works, plans were established and put in place to minimise this and keep life as normal as possible throughout the whole process.
Regional director Steve Roberts said: “While we are focusing on delivering the upgrades, we never lose sight of the people living in these homes. It’s not just about their happiness with the outcome, but the whole process – from pre-work engagement and throughout delivery.
“This project is a perfect example of why that is so important. Non–traditional cross-wall construction properties are notoriously difficult to retrofit due to the brick walls between properties having to be filled with cavity wall insulation (CWI). The timber framed front and rear elevations present a very different set of problems, this means that the cladding needed to be opened up to carry out the intrusive surveys, which is necessary to complete the retrofit design before the work even starts on the retrofit measures.
“We’re not just creating homes with projects like this one, we’re creating better living environments that offer comfort, savings, sustainability, and improved health and wellbeing now and into the future.”
The project’s success is also reflected in the strong client relationship we built with Trident Housing, which has been key to navigating the complexities of this large-scale retrofit. On the social value front, the project created a number of opportunities for local employment with newly created roles within our team.
Gareth Price, executive director for property services at Trident Group, said, “We are really pleased with the works by Sustainable Building Services Ltd. The project has been a great success in upgrading the properties in terms of carbon reduction, energy efficiency and aesthetics. Most importantly for us, our residents have all been able to say how well informed they were by SBS and how everyone on site was thoughtful and helpful. Our customers already are seeing a reduction in noise pollution in their homes making them a more peaceful place to live. We are also expecting to see a great improvement in energy efficiency over the winter.”
We are delivering work for the Matrix Housing Partnership, aiming to make hundreds of homes across the Midlands and South West more energy efficient with funding from the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund – previously called Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund.
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