The G15 has responded to the government’s Warm Homes Fund call for evidence, welcoming the opportunity to shape how future investment supports warmer, healthier and more affordable homes.
Our response highlights the significant opportunity presented by the Warm Homes Plan and the government’s commitment to support low-income households with a £5bn investment. However, we argue that funding should remain focused on upgrading existing homes, where the greatest gains can be made in tackling fuel poverty, reducing energy bills and improving residents’ quality of life.
The response also warns that there is a risk of spreading funding too thinly across a wide range of technologies, financing models and objectives. Given finite public funding and delivery capacity, we believe the priority should be accelerating practical retrofit delivery, particularly in homes occupied by lower-income households and those that are more complex and costly to improve.
To support delivery at scale, the G15 calls for:
- Long-term and flexible funding arrangements
- Realistic grant rates that reflect the true costs of retrofit
- A more proportionate approach to PAS2035 and compliance requirements
- Greater recognition of the challenges involved in retrofitting higher-rise and mixed-tenure buildings
- Investment in skills, workforce capacity and supply chains
The response emphasises that achieving the scale and pace of retrofit required will depend on funding frameworks that reflect the practical realities of delivery and remain focused on the outcomes that matter most to residents.