Soho Housing Association has announced its plans to deploy £1 million worth of funding from the Government in its latest round of grants from the ‘Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund’.
Soho Housing secured the grant from the Government’s total £1.2bn released as part of the Government’s efforts to support the decarbonisation of the UK’s social housing stock and address fuel poverty across the country.
The funding will go towards improving the energy efficiency of just over 100 homes within Soho Housing’s portfolio by upgrading the energy efficiency, heating systems and insulation of the properties. The association has an ambitious target of achieving an EPC rating of C across its portfolio of over 800 residential properties in London by 2030 and this funding will go a long way in making this happen.
By upgrading the energy efficiency and sustainability of its homes, Soho Housing aims to reduce energy usage and fuel bills for residents, making a tangible impact not only on the carbon emissions of the portfolio but also reducing household bills.
Soho Housing’s commitment to allocating this funding and upgrading the energy efficiency of its portfolio follows an ambitious retrofit programme that saw the upgrade of the association’s Sandringham Flats property. This funding will support the association’s next chapter in futureproofing its affordable homes, whilst protecting the heritage fabric of historic sites and bringing down bills for residents.
Soho Housing has appointed Ksquared to help oversee the project. Both Soho Housing and Ksquared will be working closely with residents to minimise disruption and ensure tenant and community engagement throughout the retrofit programme to provide safe, quality and sustainable affordable homes to London’s inner-city communities.
Barbara Brownlee, Chief Executive of Soho Housing, commented, “We are pleased to have secured the full amount of grant funding from the Government to improve the energy efficiency of over 100 of our affordable homes across central London.
Surveys are well underway to channel the funding towards the homes that need it most and we are working hand in glove with residents to ensure they receive maximum benefit with minimum disruption. Our newly launched Resident Services Committee will play an important role in ensuring residents’ needs are listened to and met throughout the works.
At Soho Housing, we are committed to supporting and protecting the needs of our residents and we are looking forward to residents feeling the effects of reduced energy bills as a result of these energy efficiency upgrades.”
