07.07.20
WMCA plans to retrofit 50,000 homes
The West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) has announced plans (July 6) to retrofit 50,000 homes across the region to tackle fuel poverty.
If the WMCA’s £3.2bn blueprint submitted to Government is accepted, £50m has been earmarked to begin a transformational programme of retrofitting, completing 50,000 homes by the end of 2022.
The age of local housing stock in the West Midlands is higher than average, giving the region the highest fuel poverty gap in the UK.
Low energy efficiency is not only harmful to the environment, but also makes energy bills more expensive for the households, something that can be alleviated through wall insulating and double or triple glazing window panes.
Andy Street, the Mayor of the West Midlands, said:
“The WMCA remains utterly committed to tackling the region’s climate emergency, and addressing fuel poverty is a key part of our plans. We have too many old homes in the region that are poorly insulated, leading to high energy bills.
“By addressing this not only we will be helping households out of fuel poverty at such a difficult economic time for many, but we will also be taking a strong step towards our goal of carbon neutrality by 2041.”
As part of the WMCA’s #WM2041 programme, approved last month by the Authority, the region is planning to become carbon neutral no later than 2041.
The plan also supports the creation and protection of new local jobs and training opportunities, with the proposed retrofit scale-up and supply chain development expected to create 20,000 new jobs and secure 5,000 more.
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