Retrofit Credits: time to get involved

We launched the Retrofit Credits pilot back in September 2022 and had conversations with colleagues from across the housing sector, encouraging them to take part. By February 2023, we had 22 social housing organisations involved, ranging from a small housing co-operative in Bristol and a rural housing association in Yorkshire, to a G15 London housing association and a partnership of forward-looking housing associations in Hertfordshire.

The credits originating from the pilot are expected to generate around £355,000 in revenue this year. Over the next two decades, we predict that these credits will result in over £7 million that can be reinvested into housing retrofit projects.

That’s just the numbers: critically, the additional investment will result in the further decarbonisation and improved energy efficiency of the homes, impacting positively on the lives of people, and communities, across the UK.

We were also able to sell all of the credits that have been generated, with recognisable organisations like The Economist Group, Berkeley Group, Unity Trust Bank, and Ibstock securing significant portions. Other organisations, including The PSC, Igloo, Hunters, and Kinovo, have also shown their support of Retrofit Credits.

So what’s next?

Building on the success of the pilot, we are now working with over 150 housing providers and local authorities, as well as the private sector, so that they can benefit from Retrofit Credits and generate additional revenue to finance future retrofit works. We currently have a pipeline of over 100,000 homes enrolled in the service across the UK and are having ongoing discussions with buyers to ensure that the revenues can continue to flow.

And we’re also ensuring that all of the buyers we identify will meet the ethical framework that we developed with housing association partners during the pilot.

That, however, is not all. We’re also exploring securitisation models so that income from Retrofit Credits can be passed through to housing associations upfront, thereby enabling the housing sector to decarbonise at a greater pace and larger scale than would have been possible without Retrofit Credits.

Additionally, we are working on a place-based approach, engaging local businesses to work in partnership with local authorities and housing providers so that when they offset their carbon emissions they will be investing in local housing, benefitting local people and local economies in the process.

It’s time to get involved!

We will be running a crediting cycle in the autumn this year and we are inviting housing associations and local authorities to share details of any retrofit works they have completed since January 2023. We will do the rest, calculating both the carbon emission reductions and social value created, before originating and selling off the Retrofit Credits, and then passing back the revenue to the housing provider.

Delegates at Housing 2023 flocked to our stand to find out more about Retrofit Credits – they were excited as we are about the potential of this service to reduce carbon emissions, benefit residents, and help landlords to achieve their net zero goals.

One of the questions we’ve  been asked when we’ve talked to colleagues about the scheme is “what’s the catch?”

The answer is simple: there is none. You’re doing the work already. Retrofit Credits means you can do more. It’s as simple as that.