Accessible Retrofit, Derby & Derbyshire

This project will stimulate accessible retrofit, working across tenures to provide expert and timely advice and support to households and landlords with stretched budgets, supporting them along their journey from interest to install. 

They aim to advise over 500 owner occupiers, primarily those with budgets of between £10 - £10,000, providing technical surveys in home, over the phone advice and support at key touchpoints. They will also provide carbon reduction recommendations for social and private landlords’ housing stock, covering 2,100 homes. 

The project will take a customer-first approach, understanding that cost saving and comfort are key priorities for most. Advice will cover carbon saving measures where there is a viable pathway to install. DIY workshops will train householders in measures such as draught proofing, and carry out airtightness testing for air source heat pumps.

The project will focus on ‘getting retrofit done’, celebrating successes and using viable local solutions, using low-cost technologies, and signposting available funding streams. 

They will develop local property typologies to allow replicable results, and expand a directory of installers with proven results in the county. A local media campaign will drive interest in the project and challenge common misconceptions that are forming barriers to uptake. Community Advocates will be trained to provide support in their locality and work with their growing team of retrofit specialists, providing a legacy of planned installs to accelerate the decarbonisation of homes as we approach 2030.