West Northamptonshire Council to invest £6 million to make more than 400 homes more energy efficient

The investment will reportedly support more than 9,000 jobs in the green energy sector across the country
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West Northamptonshire Council has received more than £6 million from the government’s Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF) to upgrade more than 400 council-owned homes in Northampton.

The project will be delivered by Northampton Partnership Homes (NPH) and will result in huge improvements to some of the least energy efficient homes they manage.

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Once work is completed, the houses will be 'well on their way to becoming zero carbon', which is intended to reduce energy bills and improve living conditions for those households.

Energy efficiency could have a big impact on people's rapidly rising energy billsEnergy efficiency could have a big impact on people's rapidly rising energy bills
Energy efficiency could have a big impact on people's rapidly rising energy bills

Residents in St James, Kingsley, Kingsthorpe, Abington and Kingsthorpe Hollow will benefit from the funding and will receive new windows and doors, better insulation inside and outside the home, and improved ventilation. Their homes will be easier to heat and energy bills will be reduced.

The funds will form part of NPH's 'Whole House Retrofit' project, which began last year on homes in Kingsthorpe and Kingsley, with work on some homes being completed this month.

Terence Timms, a resident who is currently having these upgrade works on his home, said: “I need to have my heating on a lot to keep warm, so I hope that the new windows and insulation will mean I save money on my bills.

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"I’ve already noticed that my new windows are much better at keeping heat in, as my old ones were draughty at times, so I’m sure I will.

Pictured: Works are already underway in KingsleyPictured: Works are already underway in Kingsley
Pictured: Works are already underway in Kingsley

"The improvements are making my home look really smart so far and I can’t wait to see how it looks when it’s all finished.”

Paul Tucker, sustainability manager at Northampton Partnership Homes said: “We’re absolutely thrilled to receive this funding, which will allow us to offer the benefits of the retrofit project to more households in Northampton.

"We’re targeting homes built in the early 20th Century as these homes are often expensive to heat and energy inefficient due to the way they’re built.”

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“Residents living in these homes face high bills when heating their homes, and these bills are set to rise even further over the next few months.

"The improvements made to homes through this project will help to lower their energy costs and make their home environment more comfortable all year round. We’re also delighted that we’ll be able to support the local economy and help create green jobs with this funding.”

The SHDF is claimed to support 9,000 jobs in the green energy sector across the country, including people who are already NPH residents.

Councillor Adam Brown, West Northamptonshire Council's Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for housing, culture and leisure, added: “I am delighted that we have received this funding which will be invested in those homes across Northampton which need improvements the most.

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“Ensuring residents have a warm and safe home that they can afford to heat is a priority for the council, especially given the rising costs of energy bills which we are facing this year.

“By improving the energy efficiency of our properties in some of our most vulnerable communities, we can help reduce fuel poverty and also help to reduce the carbon emissions from these properties.”

Anyone who is interested can find out more on the group's website.