Down to earth savings in green makeover

Bristol City Council and its partners have almost completed what they believe is the first project under the Government’s Community Energy Saving Programme (CESP) to actually get started on site. It is expected to make a real difference to tenants in heating their homes for less

Tenants in a Bristol tower block should see their fuel bills and carbon emissions descend from the high-rise life and become a little bit more down to earth once a green refurbishment programme is completed.

Work is almost completed on efforts to improve the energy efficiency of the multi-storey block in Bristol under the Government’s Community Energy Saving Programme (CESP). The improvements will help residents reduce their fuel bills and cut carbon emissions. The energy efficiency improvements are part of a refurbishment programme that is being carried out on Rawnsley House, a block of 131 flats in Easton. The works featured the screening off of balconies with insulated walls and double-glazed windows.

Stakeholders working on the project include carbon reduction company Sustain, which is managing the CESP delivery, Bristol City Council and EDF Energy, which are promoting and funding the energy saving measures, while builders Rok are undertaking and managing the refurbishment work itself.

“This programme will directly benefit residents by reducing the cost of energy bills, helping people, many of whom are on low incomes, to stay warm for less,” said Councillor Mark Wright, Bristol City Council’s cabinet member for housing and service improvement.

“The scheme is a good example of the council’s trailblazing approach to reducing our carbon footprint, an approach which has seen the city win national recognition for its commitment to the green agenda.”

CESP is a Government initiative that runs from September 2009 to December 2012 and puts an obligation on energy generators and suppliers to fund energy saving measures in homes in low-income areas. It is expected that CESP will benefit around 90,000 households in the period to December 2012.

“We enjoy working with clients who want to be at the leading edge of carbon reduction,” said Simon Gait, director at Sustain. “We piloted some of the earliest schemes with clients under the Energy Efficiency Commitment (EEC) and the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT) and we have worked hard to come up with innovative schemes for CESP. We believe that this is the first project under CESP to get off the ground since the scheme came into force in September 2009.”

The programme encourages a whole house approach to improving the energy efficiency of the UK’s existing housing stock, with innovative measures like solid wall insulation, fuel switching and low carbon technologies.

Angus Wilby, head of energy efficiency at EDF Energy, said: “As the UK’s largest producer of low-carbon electricity, EDF Energy will contribute around £65 million to CESP over the life of the programme.

“We will continue to make significant contributions towards improving the energy efficiency of low income households, which reflects our commitment to helping our most vulnerable customers reduce their energy bills.

“EDF Energy has worked with Sustain for many years and they have consistently brought innovative approaches to carbon reduction. We look forward to an equally productive and successful relationship under this new scheme.”

Rok project manager John Maratty, added: “Rok is a great advocate of programmes that reduce energy use in existing properties, so our local team based at St Werburghs is extremely proud to be playing a key role in ensuring the expectations of thecity council and the residents are met on this pioneering project.” Sustain is a leader in carbon reduction, with a track record of delivering results within key industries including energy supply, construction, the public sector and the built environment.

Once the project is complete, the benefits to the residents of Rawnsley House are obviously going to be lower fuel bills, but it will also reduce their carbon footprint. Set in isolation, the carbon reductions, as well as the contribution to reducing fuel poverty, may seem like a drop in a swirling ocean of carbon. For all that, however, they point the way to the larger benefits made as such schemes gather pace across the country – every little helps, as the saying goes, and the Bristol project is certainly doing that.