How to build up the supply chain for retrofit – event this March hosted by Cosy Homes Oxfordshire
Cosy Homes Oxfordshire‘s whole house retrofit service launched almost two years ago, with the Low Carbon Hub as lead project partner. During that time, we’ve made many learnings about working in the home retrofit sector, but our biggest barrier has always been finding enough trusted and high-quality contractors to deliver home retrofit projects in Oxfordshire – be that installers, manufacturers, electricians, or anyone else in the supply chain.
From the start we’ve had no issue finding homeowners who are keen to retrofit their home to improve comfort and reduce carbon emissions and energy bills. The market for home retrofit is clearly there. But, the supply chain to deliver this home retrofit is not. There’s clearly a need to build the supply chain for retrofit in the UK.
It’s clear there’s a need to build the supply chain for retrofit in the UK. But how do we do that? That’s the question we’re addressing through our event this March.
That’s been made doubly evident by the launch of the Green Homes Grant, and the issues that are now unfolding for homeowners who can’t access the scheme because there are no qualified contractors in their area to deliver the work, or because contractors are finding the administrative burden of the Green Homes Grant to be taking up all of their time.
If we are to create a supply chain that is ready to retrofit every home in Oxfordshire (and the UK), it means training opportunities to bring new people into the building sector – from apprenticeships to train up the young to re-skilling programmes to enable those who are unemployed to find work in the retrofit sector (supporting the green recovery from Covid-19 at the same time). There’s also room for innovation and entrepreneurship, bringing new ideas to the plate.
We know we can’t solve this problem overnight, but we do want to open conversations and spark ideas around the challenge of the supply chain for retrofit. And we’re doing that through Cosy Homes Oxfordshire being the host for a Low Carbon Homes Oxfordshire event in March, entirely focused on the supply chain for retrofit.
And if it’s a problem that interests you too, we’d love to see you there.
About the event
Date: 9-11 March 2020
Time: 8.30-12.30 (three drop-in morning sessions)
Where? Online
Run by: Low Carbon Homes
Hosted by: Cosy Homes Oxfordshire
Registration (free): https://www.lowcarbonhomes.uk/events/oxfordshire-march-9-2021/#register
Day 1 will be speaker sessions to set the context of the situation in Oxfordshire, as well as sharing info on projects already working in this area – local and national examples.
Days 2 and 3 will be workshop sessions where we’ll set key challenges in the areas discussed on day 1, with attendees breaking off into smaller groups to discuss and respond to the challenge – sparking conversations and ideas around solutions to the supply chain for retrofit problem.
Full details on the programme and speakers will be announced soon, and if you’re registered this information will be sent straight to your inbox. You’re then welcome to choose which sessions interest you or you feel you can contribute to – or come along to the whole event for the full experience.
Read next…
News storyWork in the building industry and interested in retrofit projects?
Do you have a background in the building industry? If so, would you like to train and become a Retrofit Coordinator? Cosy Homes Oxfordshire is a partnership project being delivered by Low Carbon Hub, RetrofitWorks and the National Energy Foundation to help homeowners improve the energy efficiency of their homes. It’s a scheme which is new…