Retrofit site visited by Metro Mayor
On Friday 7th July, our North Bristol Retrofit site was visited by Metro Mayor Dan Norris and Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change & Net Zero, Ed Miliband, as they launched Retrofit West.
Hawkland’s Bristol Retrofit site was visited by Metro Mayor Dan Norris and Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change & Net Zero, Ed Miliband, as they launched Retrofit West.
Retrofit West is a £10 million plan that will deliver improved energy efficiency and home improvements across the West of England. The scheme will drive forward the Mayoral Combined Authority’s ambitious target to deliver Net-Zero in the West of England by 2030. Quarter of a million West-Country homes are set to benefit from the new housing scheme, which aims to increase accessibility to sustainable retrofit alongside creating brand new green jobs.
Following the launch, Dan Norris was joined by the Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change & Net Zero, Ed Miliband, to visit our sustainable Retrofit site in the North of Bristol. It was a fantastic opportunity to showcase the benefits retrofit can bring to people’s lives, and to introduce the people who really make sustainable change within the built environment happen - our team.
Norris and Miliband were interested and enthusiastic, taking particular interest in the property’s newly-installed heat pumps. A heat pump is a cleaner, low - or zero-carbon - alternative that takes heat from the air or ground around a building and increases it to a temperature that keeps our homes and businesses warm inside. Taking heat from the air or ground in a constant cycle is sustainable and renewable, with low or no carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions – so heat pumps are both environmentally friendly and a great heating alternative to help us reach our goal of reaching net zero by 2050.
Norris and Miliband pictured with members of the Hawkland team
Retrofit is the best solution to rising energy prices as well as the urgent need to reduce carbon emissions. Reduced energy usage at home not only takes direct action against climate change, but also saves money. The Centre for Sustainable Energy defines Retrofit as ‘any improvement work on an existing building to improve its energy efficiency, making them easier to heat, able to retain that heat for longer, and replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy. Retrofitted homes are better protected against energy price increases as they can generate their own energy and are improved so they actually require less energy too.’
At Hawkland, we offer ecological, purpose-led architecture and construction that focuses on low-carbon retrofit. We utilise the latest developments in sustainable design and bio-based materials. If you’re interested in what we do, book a free discovery session to find out more.