Thousands of homes to benefit from insulation

Rochdale Council is to contribute £602,000 to install loft and cavity wall insulation into thousands of  homes in the borough.

The money will be spent over a three year period and supports an AGMA (Association of Greater Manchester Authorities) campaign to fit homes with basic insulation measures.

The Council’s financial commitment is hoped to attract Energy Company CERT (Carbon Emission Reduction Target) funding. This will accelerate the installation of basic energy efficiency measures into approximately 37,000 homes in the borough over the next three years and assist in the reduction fuel poverty for residents whilst reducing CO2 levels against council targets. The funding will support insulation measures for properties in the borough.

Rochdale Council’s Cabinet has approved the inclusion of £200,000 funding for the Housing Retrofit Programme in the proposed 2011/2012 Capital Programme, with a further £201,000 being included in the provisional Capital Programme for both 2012/2013 and 2013/2014.

The Cabinet report, reads: “Evidence over the last decade suggests that where local authority funds have been made available, significant progress has been achieved in the installation of basic energy efficiency measures over authorities where this has not been the case.

“An early and key priority is a focus on loft and cavity wall insulation in homes across Greater Manchester by 2013 to deliver basic energy efficiency measures to 75 per cent of all remaining homes with under-insulated lofts or un-insulated cavities. This figure recognises that not all eligible residents will take up the offer and not all lofts and cavity walls can be filled.

“As an illustration of the levels of progress required in the borough, recent activity has been examined to provide a forecast. Over the next 3 years, measures will need to be installed at an approximate doubling of the current rate of installations.”