The housing retrofit in the UK

The housing retrofit in the UK

The housing retrofit in the UK is an issue that has been ongoing for some time. Statistics suggest that more than three-quarters of the homes in the UK were built before the nineteen eighties meaning the current requirements for insulation and energy performance are not in place in several homes. This essay aims at examining the housing retrofit in the United Kingdom. The essay will begin with an analysis of the issues that affect most of the homes in this region that make the need for retrofitting great before examining why housing, especially deep retrofit is one of the best solutions. Lastly, the barriers to hosing retrofit will be discussed.

In the year two thousand and eight, the Climate Change Act was used to set a legitimate target in the UK to aid the nation to reduce the greenhouse gases that were emitted. This reduction figure was to be by at least eighty percent by the year twenty fifty. Research showed that the high demand for household energy is based on hot water heating and space (Twinn 2018, 6). This means that there is a need to retrofit and refurbish as a way of delivering the required carbon savings.

Therefore, one of the reasons for housing retrofit in the UK is due to the impact on UK energy demand and Greenhouse gas emissions (Twinn 2018, 6). To achieve the goals of the Climate Change Act, the carbon emissions must be drastically decreased, notably the domestic energy consumption rate that accounts for an approximate figure of thirty percent of the total UK energy budget. In two thousand and sixteen, the highest percentage of energy consumption in the UK was transport (Twinn 2018, 6) followed by domestic energy consumption.

The other reason for retrofitting is the need to carbonize heat in that the usage of heat energy in several households is high, thus requiring heat demand reduction or to decarbonize. This process has begun in some industries (Twinn, 2018, 6). The electric supply system in the UK is been decarbonized through the elimination of plants that are based on the use of coal. One might wonder how heat and electrical energy are similar. There are several similarities and differences between the two. The domestic demand for electric energy supply is different depending on the period of the day.

Heat demand and electricity demand are practically the same in specific periods in the UK, such as the summer. The same cannot be said about winter when the heat demand skyrockets by about six times that of electricity. It is vital to note that if the levels of heat demand remain the same, the chance to switch to low-carbon electric heating begin to dissipate (Dekoninck, Elias, & Culley 2007, 2). To effectively reduce heat demand, households should increase their thermal efficiency. New homes that are currently under construction in the UK have to adhere to the codes and standards of energy efficacy. The same cannot be said about the rest that was built before the realization of the issue at hand.

The best way to begin retrofit in the UK is by using programs. One of the starting point programs that can be implemented is the social housing Programme strategy. Many specialists believe that it has a critical role in the developing market. In the UK, seventeen percent of the total housing stock is attributed to local authority and association homes. This means that social housing is a more though accessible market to access in comparison to private rental or “owner-occupied”. The deep retrofit of the existing houses in the UK will enhance other benefits apart from the reduction in carbon emissions, as well as meeting the challenges of the Climate Change Act.

Many have suggested that the retrofitting programs would cost the nation plenty of capital and resources. A specialist from the Nottingham Trent University suggests that there is the need for a one-off deep retrofit for all residential properties across the nation (Harvey 2018, 1). She states that this activity will reduce the expenses involved instead of implementing the strategy bits by bits. This is because areas such as the supply chain capacity will be improved. Statistics show that the cost of retrofitting a standard house in the UK can cost approximately seventeen thousand pounds (Harvey 2018, 1). This entails lower energy bills, warmer homes, and a decreased burden on the NHS that is currently spending up to one and a half billion pounds annually treating poor housing conditions.

Even though the solution to retrofit houses across the UK seems like the best viable solution, several challenges arise from its implementation. The first challenge is that the approach can be invasive to the public. Most individuals are not comfortable when their privacy is interrupted, making this strategy a difficult one to be accepted by the public, especially is the retrofit is a large-scale project. This challenge falls under occupant management in the technical difficulties of housing retrofit. Another challenge is the costs involved in implementation. The final costs for future cases maker large-scale retrofit in the UK unfeasible; this can be attributed to the builds that were performed on an individual basis. The requirement for cheaper retrofits should be investigated.

In conclusion, the changes in time and environment have provided a platform where the current housing standards of homes in the UK trigger or increase the emission of carbon gases among other ailments that may impact the environment. Most of these emissions are triggered by the high demand heat, which exudes plenty of carbon gases into the atmosphere. Retrofitting will manage the emission issue creating a decrease in the levels of carbon in the atmosphere. The social housing program is one of the programs that can be utilized, although retrofit seems like the best viable solution. There are some challenges associated with this strategy, such as the costs involved in implementation. All in all, the benefits outweigh the challenges making this the best solution at the moment.