Climate change action plan 2021-23

Heat reduction
In order to maximise both the cost and carbon efficiency
of Northumberland’s building stock, starting with a
“fabric first” approach is key. This means utilising the
most modern insulation techniques and applying
these with confidence in their most appropriate
settings. Due to the diverse portfolio of properties,
there is no “one size fits all” approach and hence
bespoke options will be required to be delivered.
Properties may be broken into certain archetypes
which allows for certain measures to be replicated in
large numbers, for instance those with cavities should
have cavity wall insulation and all properties which
have an unused loft space (i.e. no room in roof)
should have 300mm of loft insulation applied (current
standard). These measures have been supported
through the government’s ECO programmes and
Northumberland County Council will continue to
promote and support the implementation to be
funded through this and other supported
mechanisms, where available.
In order to maximise both the carbon reductions and
the investment within the county Northumberland
County Council will support engagement through
two distinct angles;
Domestic properties – support those who are
eligible to apply for Green Homes Grant 7 funding
and other support mechanisms such as Energy
Company Obligation (ECO) 8 funding to facilitate
economic investment in these technologies and
encouraging the able to pay market to adopt these
technologies as part of a carbon reduction strategy.
Commercial properties - there are limited support
mechanisms which are as wide reaching as Green
Homes Grant for businesses, but support does exist
through several agencies, such as North East LEP,
North of Tyne Combined Authority and Borderlands.
It will be for Northumberland County Council and
our partners to support businesses to access
relevant mechanisms and encourage them to
adopt appropriate technologies themselves.
Despite best intentions, there are fundamental
challenges in improving the thermal efficiency of
some properties, described generally as “hard to
treat” these include single skin stone-built properties.
Accurately identifying these properties and
understanding what, if any, measures can be applied
to support these properties is important. Without
sufficient thermal improvements these properties will
still rely on fossil fuels as a primary fuel source.
Methods of decarbonising heat
Renewable heating most efficiently runs at low
temperatures (30-45°C) and hence thermal efficiency
is key in maintaining comfortable heat levels within
properties. To support this heat emitters often require
increasing in size to provide sufficient energy at lower
temperatures to heat room spaces. This can provide
major disruption and inconvenience to people’s lives,
reinforcing the requirement for up front engagement
and support to assist understanding of the
technologies to be implemented.
As will be discussed in greater detail in the next
section, a large part of the clean growth strategy
outlined by BEIS is supporting low carbon district
heat networks 9 . In order to meet the ambitious 2030
target in a cost-effective way district heat networks
will require wide roll out across urban areas. These
networks may involve removing boilers from people’s
home as they would become reliant on a centralised
heat source providing heat directly to their
properties. This is likely to be met with resistance and
uncertainty until first adopters are receiving high
quality service without issues.
Other types of heating will involve properties having
direct responsibility for their own heating source, be
this a heat pump or other technology. This may be
more palatable to end customers but is likely to suffer
from lower efficiencies and higher end costs to some
consumers. Promoting opportunities to understand
the impacts of renewable heat and to access grants
or loans will be a key part of our communications and
engagement strategy.
7
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/apply-for-the-green-homes-grant-scheme
8
https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-programmes/eco
9
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/green-heat-network-fund-proposals-for-the-scheme-design
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Climate Change Action Plan 2021-23