Birmingham City Council’s Cabinet has approved a bid to central government for over £20 million to help retrofit over 2,000 of the draughtiest council properties, and bring them up to the EPC C rating.
Birmingham’s Green Party councillors are now calling on the Labour-run Council to be bolder in their plans to tackle the climate and take thousands more out of fuel poverty.
The Green Party say the council needs more ambitious plans to insulate more existing properties to a higher energy standard and to build zero carbon homes.
Green Party Group Leader Councillor Julien Pritchard said: “While this bid to government is welcome, and insulating a small number of existing council properties to a C rating is better than nothing, the truth is it barely scratches the surface of what’s needed to make Birmingham’s homes warmer and greener.”
“The Labour-run Council needs to be much bolder and more creative. Birmingham Green Party wants to see a zero carbon housing plan that:”
- retrofits all council properties to the highest possible energy efficiency standard”
- ensures all new council houses are built to the passivhaus standard”
- supports private renters and homeowners to retrofit their homes”
- The small projects the Council have planned so far are welcome, but they don’t go far enough.
“We need to see change at scale and fast. Doing this at scale will also bring costs down.”
“A variety of funding models exist to make this an affordable and positive for councils, homeowners and tenants alike.”
“Too many residents in Birmingham, like many in my own ward, are having to choose between eating and heating. And the climate emergency can’t wait.”
Notes:
Passivhaus is a model with over 30 years of success in delivering net-zero housing that require very little energy for heating or cooling.
Meanwhile the Dutch Energiesprong initiative uses prefabricated kits to radically improve the efficiency of existing homes.