Leeds City Council decarbonisation scheme celebrated for cutting fuel poverty
The Yorkshire city has been awarded for developing a programme to increase energy efficiency, in turn helping residents through last winter’s historic crisis, in which 1/6 of households in the authority struggled to pay for heating.
The ASCP Awards recognised the positive impact on fuel poverty that has arisen from the partnership between Leeds City Council and water and energy efficiency specialist Cenergist. The initiative, Clustering for Warmth, aims to deliver low carbon heating and hot water upgrades to more than 1,700 council-owned homes between 2021 and 2024.
Inefficient electric storage heaters are replaced with ground source heat pumps, air source heat pumps, and district heating solutions. Households that have seen work complete reported an average annual utility bill saving of £360. The project forms part of the authority’s wider £100million investment in energy efficiency improvements to housing stock, currently one of the UK’s largest green home and bill reduction schemes. Since 2020, bills have been reduced by 52% in homes that have had upgrades, with carbon savings equivalent to 400 fewer cars on the roads or 235 less homes.
‘We’re delighted that this fantastic scheme has been recognised at the ASCP awards,’ said Gerard Tinsdale, Chief Officer of Housing at Leeds City Council. ‘Through our partnership with Cenergist we have delivered a sustainable, low carbon solution that not only improves the heating solution for our residents but crucially provides real-world savings on utility bills.’
‘We are very happy to be part of this award winning partnership with Leeds City Council. The ‘Clustering for Warmth’ initiative is a brilliant, sustainable project and one we were proud to be a part of during these challenging times,’ added Dan Ludgate, Group Business Development Director at Cenergist. ‘While it is great to win this award, what really matters is that thanks to our solution, residents in hundreds of homes are now benefiting from a reduced carbon footprint and smaller utility bills.’
More on household energy efficiency:
How Essex County Council fuelled economic growth with energy retrofits
1-in-6 Leeds households trapped in fuel poverty as energy upgrades begin
Image: Al Elmes