We’ve secured a £7m to provide energy efficiency and green solutions to hundreds of Bernicia homes in the North East
0800 Repair, part of PHS Home Solutions, has been awarded a £7m project by housing association Bernicia to install energy saving and renewable energy systems to hundreds of homes in the North East.
The contract will see 865 Bernicia properties improved to meet Government targets through a range of measures including better insulation, air source heat pumps and solar panels.
0800 Repair, which is based in Houghton-le-Spring, County Durham, is starting on the two-year project with work at ten properties in Berwick. It won the contract to carry out the upgrades as part of a competitive tender process.
It is is part of Bernicia’s strategic target of making 90% of its housing stock ‘SAP C’ energy efficiency rated by 2025-26, five years ahead of the Government’s target.
A range of work will be carried out to improve the energy efficiency of properties across the region through a fabric-first approach using measures such as external wall, loft, cavity wall, and underfloor insulation.
Some properties will also receive renewable technologies such as solar photovoltaic (PV) panels or air source heat pumps, moving away from reliance on fossil fuels to power and heat buildings.
Bernicia, a consortium member of The North East & Yorkshire Net Zero Hub, together with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero as part of the Government’s Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund Wave 2.1, is investing £7m of an £80.6m project targeting more than 5,000 homes across the North East and Yorkshire. This work is at no cost to tenants and will not affect their rent.
Ahead of the works on the Bernicia properties, tenants will have the opportunity to meet with representatives from the housing association and 0800 Repair to discuss the energy efficiency improvements to their homes.
Michael Pallister, 0800 Repair Operations Director, said: “We are immensely proud to be working with Bernicia to deliver this contract, improving people’s homes and making a real difference to the quality of their lives.
“As a local business, we take huge pride in being able to make people’s homes more energy efficient, keeping them warmer in their homes and giving them more money in their back pockets through cheaper bills.”
Jason Oakes, PHS Home Solutions Sales Director, said: “We bring extensive experience working closely with social housing providers to improve the energy efficiency of their tenants’ properties and introduce green energy solutions that are better for the environment.
“We will work in close partnership with Bernicia throughout this project to support their tenants and deliver the most suitable measures for their properties. Some homes may have up to six or seven energy efficiency measures taken, others maybe two or three. We will be looking at the whole house and arriving at the best energy solution for that house.”
Sharon Brookes, Bernicia Head of Asset and Retrofit, said: “This is great news for our tenants. It builds upon our continued investment in measures, which improve the energy and environmental performance of our tenants’ homes, helping to keep them warmer while cutting their energy bills and reducing carbon emissions. We are committed to investing £70m into wider major improvement works in our homes and communities by 2026.”
Photo caption: left of picture, back left, Gareth Wright (Bernicia), front left, Michael Pallister (0800 Repair). Right of picture, back to front, Jason Oakes (0800 Repair), Ryan Irving-Carr (Bernicia), Mark Brewis (Bernicia) and Sharon Brooks (Bernicia).