Accord Group up for green award

The Accord Group, one of the largest housing groups in the Midlands, has been nominated for a national eco award.

The Accord Group, which is campaigning to become to ‘greenest’ in the country, has been shortlisted for the Public Engagement & Communication Initiative Award at this year’s UK-wide Retrofit Awards.

The awards aim to reward retrofitting projects that involve the local community, with the Accord Group being chosen for its Fit for the Future Campaign.

The Fit for the Future pilot project, funded by Advantage West Midlands and led by Accord in partnership with Black Country and Family housing associations and Sandwell Homes, aims to raise awareness of sustainability and help the region develop its role as an economic hub of green technology.

So far more than 165 residents across the Midlands have been trained in cutting their carbon and reducing fuel bills as part of the campaign. Over 25 are completing a one-day accredited Level 2 course and 20 trades-people are also being trained in a Level 3 retrofitting qualification.

There are also five paid jobs as Community Climate Change Champions up for grabs - who will be employed by Accord through the Future Jobs Fund.

Natalie Jones, project co-ordinator for the Fit for the Future campaign, said: “Accord is campaigning to be the ‘greenest housing association in the country’ so to be nominated for this brand new eco award is fantastic.

“The Fit for the Future campaign has proved really popular with the communities we work in with residents not only learning how they can be more eco friendly and save money, but also being given the opportunity to widen their career options.

“So far we’ve trained more than 165 residents in ‘going green’ and we’re hoping to exceed that number and train 600 people!”

The Retrofit Awards, organised by The Architects Journal, The BEST Show and New Civil Engineer, will take place at The BEST Show at the ICC in Birmingham in October.