Energy efficiency and our housing stock

What we're doing to help

We published a report in 2019 which highlighted that:

• 51% of the borough’s carbon emissions were generated by residential homes
• 14.6% of homes in the area were fuel poor households
• 70% of Waltham Forest’s 107,216 homes pre-date 1944

New-build properties with energy efficient technology are only part of the solution, so it’s vital to find a way to reduce carbon emissions from existing homes, through retrofitting.

Investing in our housing stock

Over the next ten years, we are investing £50 million in specific energy projects, as part of the council climate emergency for a zero-carbon future.

A lot of projects will also be grant funded and invest in new technology to improve our housing stocks’ carbon footprint. Our focus is on works by keeping homes warm through:

• wall, roof, and floor insulation
• new forms of heating
• solar PV panels
• air pumps
• using recycled or reclaimed materials.

We will also continue our capital works investment programme, where we are investing £1 million per year in the replacement of windows and roofs, this will improve the energy efficiency of our current social housing stock and help reduce these carbon emissions.

Investing in energy efficient options for the borough

In 2019 the Government committed to bringing all greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050. We have committed to achieving this by 2030. Housing accounts for over 50% of local carbon emissions in Waltham Forest. To make an impact on these emissions we need to look at more energy efficient options. By 2030 our aim is for all our social housing to have an EPC rated B, this is in line with London Council’s targets.