National Retrofit Strategy NRS

[edit] Introduction

In December 2020, the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) announced its support for the creation of a National Retrofit Strategy (NRS). In conjunction with the announcement came the CLC's publication of the consultation, Greening Our Existing Homes.

Following the consultation, the second iteration of the National Retrofit Strategy was published on 28 May 2021, setting out how the construction industry can work with Government to retrofit the UK’s 28 million existing homes.

[edit] Purpose of the NRS

Existing homes use 35% of all the energy in the UK. They are also responsible for 20% of carbon dioxide emissions. The NRS puts forward a plan for upgrades that are vital if the country intends to meet its net zero targets.

The intention of the plan is to help make homes greener and more energy and water efficient, warmer and more affordable to run. This is in line with the UK Government’s target to upgrade as many homes as possible to Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) C by 2035.

[edit] Specific strategies

Ideally, the NRS will aid recovery in the repair, maintenance and improvement (RMI) sector, and provide opportunities for a cohesive approach to addressing the issue of climate change by all parts of the construction industry.

The strategy calls for partnership working between industry and Government based on three key deliverables:

• Creating a ‘building passport’ in the form of building renovation plans for every home.
• Developing skills training modules consistent with PAS 2035/2030 (Retrofit Coordinator training standards)
• Providing delivery programmes in trial areas to serve as best practice models and foster a grassroots approach.

[edit] Development of NRS

The NRS was developed by participants of the Domestic RMI Workstream. This group was formed to bring together specialists and representatives from the supply chain to address sector priorities. The group is one of the CLC’s four sector specific workstreams created to explore issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic recovery.

CLC Steering Coordination Group member Mark Reynolds said, “Retrofit promises a great deal for the sector, including a long-term pipeline of work. Not limited to this, retrofit brings opportunities for upskilling, digitisation and innovation, which are all in line with the Construction Sector Deal.”

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