The IPPR, usually described as a left-leaning think-tank, has added its voice to calls for a nationwide retrofitting programme but also sets out how the required workforce can be formed to deliver it.
The report, called Train local, Work local, Stay local: Retrofit, growth and levelling up, says: “Realising the opportunity of locally-trained retrofitting workforces will require increasing awareness of the value of training, improving accessibility and attractiveness of training both to new apprentices and other workers in the construction sector, and in some cases, improving the content and quality of training provision by offering more practical, hands-on experience, and clamping down on bad practices.”
It adds: “Addressing these issues will of course need to be part of a wider and coordinated package of policy measures that drive a nationwide retrofitting programme, including a national awareness raising campaign and substantial grant and loan funding for homes to be able to afford these upgrades. But to avoid the false-starts of previous high-profile policy failures and instead genuinely deliver levelling up across England, it is essential that any intervention is explicitly long-term in nature, and that the government supports industry to prepare for a wave of economic activity and opportunity.”
Among the recommendations to government made in the report is: “Improve training and jobs standards by introducing a whole-house heating standard to bring together energy efficiency and low-carbon heating supply chains so that upskilling everyone in the industry means giving them a holistic understanding of heat loss” – which sounds like it wants insulation to become part of the plumbing curriculum.
It advocates the reintroduction of skills academies to distribute funding and coordinate the rollout of training. But it also calls for a ban on training certificates that are simply awarded to anyone who pays for them, suggesting that TrustMark should be given resources to clamp down on mickey-mouse certification schemes.
The report concludes: “In the face of the worst energy price crisis in at least 50 years, retrofitting the UK’s cold, damp, and leaky housing stock with high-quality insulation and low-carbon heating has never been more urgent or important. The government must respond in kind with a nationwide retrofitting programme to cut household energy bills, increase domestic energy security by reducing reliance on gas imports, and save the NHS billions of pounds.
“These benefits alone are worth pursuing, but retrofitting can also become the cornerstone of the government’s levelling up strategy in England. Almost every home across the nation will need to be upgraded with insulation, low carbon heating, or both as part of a whole-house retrofitting approach. With the sheer scale of installations this would require comes a huge opportunity to create locally trained retrofitting jobs and provide a substantial boost to local economies.”
On reading the report, Local Government Association environment spokesperson David Renard commented: “Councils have long been calling for further investment into retrofitting homes and public buildings. Not only do poorly insulated buildings waste money for households and the public purse, but they also dampen local and national efforts to reach climate change targets.
“All households, especially those that are fuel poor need support to decrease their energy bills, and retrofitting leaky homes will do this as well as help protect more vulnerable people from suffering cold and damp conditions that can lead to ill health.
“Councils are best placed to deliver programmes to help decarbonise England’s buildings. They have the local knowledge, experience, trusted status, relationships with residents and the ability to forge local partnerships. We are keen to help the government deliver on this win-win policy and insulate more homes.”
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