Rep theatre

Energy confidence

 

One of my earliest memories is going to see a pantomime of Jack and the Beanstalk at the Rep Theatre on a school trip.  So when the Rep Theatre asked me to help them with their energy use just before Christmas, I got the chance to meet Jack himself backstage while I was looking at their heating and cooling controls! 

A lot of my clients have already made some progress with reducing their energy waste, and approach me for practical advice on what to do next.  The Rep were no different.  In fact they had already implemented some of the changes I would have recommended.  So one of my first tasks was to measure the impact of what they had already done.  Imagine their surprise when I told them that they had reduced their energy use on heating and cooling by one half!  Working with their team, I was able to recommend further actions to reduce their running costs and greenhouse gas emissions, and to address the erratic fluctuations in temperature that you get in a 1960s classic of Brutalist architecture made of dense concrete and glass.  After all, I would hate to think of Jack being too cold or too hot at the top of his beanstalk, with only a pair of tights to protect him against the competing bodies of hot and cold air that can result when a building doesn’t have proper control over heating and cooling systems!

If you’re a business or householder that needs honest, practical advice on reducing your greenhouse gas emissions, then please check out my energy advice packages. 

Energy confidence

 

 

 

Are you a social, cooperative, or charitable housing provider that has homes that need energy efficiency improvements?

I can help you to prepare for a bid to the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund.

The next bidding round is expected to open in the autumn of 2023. But experience shows that you should start preparing before then.I can help you with the essential tasks that will have you ready to be part of a bid, including:

    • putting together the energy performance data that you will need to be part of a bid
    • a long-term energy saving strategy for your homes that will enable you to identify which homes to put into a 2023 SHDF bid
    • understanding the likely costs
    • being able to measure and report on the likely benefits (reduced energy use and greenhouse gas emissions; financial savings to residents.

 

If you are a small provider you will probably need to bid as part of a consortium. I can help you identify whom to work with. If you are a larger provider you have a choice of bidding on your own, or being part of a consortium.

I will make it easier for your bid-writers to write your bid in the autumn. If you have already identified a bid-writer, then I will work with them over the summer of 2023 to help them prepare.

 

 

I have written two successful bids to the SHDF so I know what it takes to get the funding.

  Contact me now to see how I can help.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

charity energy grants

Energy confidence

 

Third Sector magazine has announced that £31 million in dormant assets will be released to charities to fund energy saving measures.

If you are a charity, I can help you decide where to start with making best use of this funding.

I give honest, practical, jargon-free advice to:

  • Charities
  • Social Enterprises
  • Cooperatives

In all building types including:

  • Offices
  • Theatres
  • Libraries
  • Swimming baths
  • Leisure Centres
  • Co-working spaces
  • Educational establishments
  • Churches, mosques, synagogues, mandirs, gurdwaras, Quaker meetings

and many more.

My recent clients include:

  • Jericho Foundation
  • Moseley Community Development Trust
  • Rep Theatre
  • Moseley Road Baths
  • Plus dozens of places of worship.

I can give you energy and environmental advice across all aspects of your operations including:

  • Energy efficiency
  • Renewable energy including solar, heat pumps
  • Water saving
  • Your “scope 3” emissions such as procurement, transport, waste
  • Monitoring your progress so you can prove your impact.

 

Working with me will give you:

  • Clarity on where to begin
  • Confidence that you are taking the right actions for your building
  • Cost-effective use of your money and resources
  • Carbon savings by implementing the right measures and monitoring their effectiveness.

 

Contact me now to discuss how I can help you show your community, your funders and donors that you are ethical and sustainable.

 

 

learn more

 

https://www.thirdsector.co.uk/charities-31m-release-dormant-assets/finance/article/1815422 

thermal image of heat loss from a church

 

Energy confidence

 

Many places of worship are difficult and expensive to keep warm, especially if they are used only intermittently.  Plus heating the worship space is often the biggest single source of greenhouse gas emissions from a church, mosque, mandir, synagogue or gurdwara.

Often I give advice to places of worship who have old heating systems that are based on wet radiators; they are suitable for a home but not for a place of worship with high ceilings, because they don’t get heat where it’s needed.  So the congregation complain of being cold during the winter.  

Sometimes it’s best to consider whether the congregation can move to another space that is easier to heat.  But this isn’t always possible or desirable.

One solution is to heat the person as well as the space.

Some efficient ways of heating the person are:

  • Under-pew heating – this is like a low-temperature electric blanket that goes under fixed pews, and heats the person from below
  • Rechargeable chair cushion heaters, that heat the person where there are individual chairs instead of fixed pews (if you have access to solar panels – either onsite, or offsite, or a solar charger, then you can potentially use solar energy to charge the heaters, as cushion heaters are low-temperature and don’t need much power).  
  • Infra-red heaters.

You should continue to heat the space as well as the person.  If you heat the person, then you need less heat for the space.  If you eliminate space heating altogether, then this can lead to problems with condensation and damp, and cause damage to the building fabric.  It can also cause circulation problems in a wet central heating system if you have short bursts of on/off.

The first video below is a case study from a church that uses rechargeable heaters.

 

 

The second video below is a case study from a church that uses under-pew heating.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you need impartial expert energy saving advice for your place of worship, business or home, please contact me.

Learn more

 

Maggie and Dave are hosting our next Birmingham Green Doors event on 4 March 2023.

 

 

 

I have been there before to give them energy advice, but tonight was the first time I have been back since their green home makeover.

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are many features and benefits I could list but what struck me most was that it was evenly and consistently warm and comfortable throughout.

 

There are lots of measurements, thermal images, spreadsheets that could prove the carbon impact of what they’ve done. But you need to feel the comfort with your own five senses. This is an early 20th Century Edwardian terrace. They are notoriously leaky and draughty. If you move from one room to another you notice the difference. But not in Maggie and Dave’s house. On a cold January evening, the whole house is warm as toast.

At Maggie and Dave’s open house event on 4 March you will learn about:

  • How wall insulation has not only reduced heat loss, but improved airtightness, whose role in making a house warm or cold is often overlooked
  • The heat pump installer has done their job properly – they have designed flow rates, flow temperatures, and radiator sizing to ensure a steady background heat; with heating controls that are easy to use
  • How they have dealt with heat loss from the extremities of the house, such as the bay window
  • For those who like figures, you will be able to learn how much energy and carbon has been saved
  • Why you need to add ventilation when insulating a home – and how to do it
  • How Maggie and Dave chose and supervised the right contractors for the job

 

Who should attend?
  • People who are interested in making their home more energy efficient
  • Professionals working in housing and energy who are interested in warm, green homes
  • Community workers who want to help residents save energy
  • Students, teachers and academics interested in decarbonisation.

 

BOOK NOW!  Three time slots available.  Near Erdington train station, bus routes.

 

Warm and toasty

Energy confidence

 

I have been giving householders impartial advice on preventing condensation damp for 25 years.  I have managed advice programmes and raised millions of pounds of funding for energy saving programmes.  Yet here we are in 2023 and the number of people asking me to help them make their homes warmer and more energy efficient is greater than ever.   The problem of condensation damp in homes is getting more widespread, across all income groups.  The way we live in our homes is changing, and so condensation damp is a growing problem.  In this pay-as-you-feel e-book I will take you through the causes of condensation damp, and more importantly, help you to think through some solutions.  

 

The internet is full of free advice about condensation damp nowadays.  Some good, some bad.  But most of it is tied to the sale of a particular product.  Free doesn’t always mean impartial.  I am independent of any energy company or manufacturer.  So even if I advise someone to use a piece of kit, you can be sure that my advice is truly impartial, and in your best interests, because I am not on commission from anybody.   If you subsequently decide you want to buy an energy advice package from me, then it will similarly be impartial, but you are under no obligation to buy.

There are no quick fixes to condensation damp, but the good news is that there is always something you can do.  If you’re tired of condensation damp in your home then read on. 

This is a pay-as-you-feel product – suggested payment £10.  You will get access to a pdf version with images; a large print plain text version in Lexia font; a condensation action plan template; and my energy saving workbook.

 

 

Download now

 

 

 

grandparent with grandchild in kitchen

 

Energy confidence

 

“LADS” = Local Authority Delivery Scheme – it’s a grant scheme aimed at installing energy saving measures in low-income households.

Sounds great!  But a number of local authorities have struggled to deliver it.  Including here in the West Midlands.

The biggest single reason is that central government gives local authorities an unrealistic timescale of 12 months to deliver it.

In 12 months, local authorities might have to:

  • set priorities for which homes should be targeted
  • go through a procurement exercise for retrofit assessors and installers
  • promote the availability of the scheme to eligible residents
  • sign up residents and deal with enquiries
  • carry out retrofit assessments
  • deal with drop-outs and objections
  • install the measures
  • complete the paperwork to show that the money has been spent properly.

An additional constraint is that it is high risk to install external wall insulation between October and March, because there is an increased risk of the render finish cracking.  This means you have seven months to deliver the scheme – from April to the end of October – if it involves external wall insulation on solid wall or system-built homes.

It’s no wonder the LADS scheme is so difficult to deliver.  The government should extend the delivery period to at least two years.

One other thing that does need to change is the way expectations of these scheme are managed.  We know from the experience of past schemes such as the Green Deal, that if scheme managers talk big numbers that they can’t deliver, or promise complex measures such as external wall insulation or heat pumps that they can’t realistically deliver, then people will feel let down and will lose trust in the scheme.  Community organisations and activists who want ensure that their neighbours take advantage of the scheme, can find that people’s trust in them is undermined.  The relationship between a community organisation and the people it serves becomes transactional and extractive.  We saw this on past schemes such as the Green Deal.

Sometimes it is better to stop promoting something and withdraw from it.  This is a difficult decision but it is in nobody’s interest to mislead vulnerable residents and to give them false hope.

We should also avoid using terms like “retrofit” in schemes aimed at the general public.  It’s jargon, and most people don’t understand what it means.  

 

wind farm

 

Energy confidence

 

 

At the recent Labour Party conference, Sir Keir  Starmer announced that that the party would create a publicly-owned energy generation company, Great British Energy.

We look forward to further announcements but it looks like Great British Energy will:

  • -raise funds from private sources including crowdfunding/bonds for renewable energy projects
  • sell the electricity to energy retailers.

More renewable energy such as large-scale wind, solar, wave, tidal energy, is to be welcomed, along with electricity storage and smart grids, is to be welcomed.  It is a step forward in making progress towards net zero.  Energy generation that is owned by the people is not a new idea – I first came across the idea in 2001 and was a founder member of Community Energy Birmingham in 2011 – but until now it has not become mainstream.  This is an opportunity for consumers to own much of our generation and storage of electricity.

Renewable electricity is cheaper than fossil fuel and nuclear electricity.  But the retail cost of electricity to householders and businesses won’t go down while retail prices are linked to gas prices.  There needs to be market reform for this to happen in a way that benefits all energy consumers.  In the meantime innovative ways are available for renewable generators to pass on the cost savings of renewable energy to consumers – as Ripple Energy have done through their partnership with Octopus Energy, where members of the Ripple Energy cooperative (such as me), see a discount on their electricity bill with Octopus Energy.  The Labour Party needs to follow through the good idea of Great British Energy with some innovative thinking over the coming months, to get the most out of the model for consumers and the environment.

In addition to renewable energy, we need to make all homes and businesses more energy efficient.  If you would like impartial advice on energy saving in your home or business, then please check out my energy advice packages.  If you have an idea for an energy saving or renewable energy project, please contact me for a discussion.  

If you want to learn from people who have already made their home more energy efficient, then book now for the next Birmingham Green Doors study visit on 15th October. 

confusion
Energy confidence
What are the most common types of objection to energy saving measures?

 

And how can we deal with them in a way that centres the needs of the householder?

 

  1. I need more information.

Some examples of this type of objection are:

  • I don’t know if a heat pump would work for me, and I need more information on how it would heat my home on a cold night, and still be affordable.  It’s not difficult to understand why.  Most people have not seen a heat pump working in a home.  They are more likely to have read an article in a hostile newspaper than to have seen a heat pump.  You need to listen to their objection and find out what their fears are.  Once you know their fears you can tackle them.   
  • I need more information on this ventilation system because I am concerned that it will be expensive to run.  Most homes in the UK have inadequate ventilation; you need to be able to show to the householder the benefits of proper ventilation and the role of ventilation in reducing moisture-related risks.  Most householders have limited understanding of this.  Once you have done this you need to be able to show them how improvements in the efficiency of ventilation system mean for their actual running costs – since there is an urban myth that they use a lot of electricity.
  • I don’t know where to start, or what to do first.  We need to invest time in showing householders what the energy saving hierarchy means in their home, and in what order we should do things.  Transactional or measures-based approaches fail to do this, and cause confusion and suspicion.  Householders often know more about their home than we do, and we should use this knowledge, and work with it not against it.
  • I need to know if the energy saving measure is guaranteed.   Big energy saving measures such as insulation and heating systems will have a guarantee but it’s not always obvious to householders how they activate the guarantee if anything goes wrong.  It is an essential, but often overlooked, part of the handover of energy saving measures to ensure they are given adequate information about guarantees.
  • What aftercare do I get?  Many energy saving measures are handed over without any aftercare.  Examples of aftercare that should be given or shown include: how to fix things to walls that have been insulated; how to use heating controls; what is the expected impact of solar panels that have been installed.  Yet this aftercare is often neglected.  I get many enquiries from householders about this, where they are in the dark about how things work.  This includes people who have moved into a house with energy saving measures, where the landlord/letting agent/estate agent has no idea how they work.  There needs to be proper aftercare, including to people who lack fluency in written or spoken English, and retrofit passports for houses that are resold or relet.  

2. Will this work in my home?

People won’t buy what they haven’t seen. Most people have now seen solar panels. Very few people have seen a heat pump in a home in the UK.  We need to be able to exemplify homes that have them – schemes like Birmingham Green Doors and Superhomes do this.

3. I need to speak to my partner first

Within a household, there is often the perception of conflicting views. It is commonly assumed that goals such as saving the planet, saving money, and keeping warm are in conflict with each other. This often takes the form of “my spouse is an environmentalist who is motivated by saving the planet, whereas I am mainly concerned with saving money and keeping warm”. In reality these goals are not mutually exclusive and it is possible to persuade people that you can save the planet, save money, make the home more comfortable, and improve the value of a home. Key to this is a whole-house energy strategy. Starting with a shopping list of energy saving measures makes it harder to synchronise goals that are seem to be in opposition to each other.

4. It’s too expensive

Some energy saving measures are expensive.  Some installers of measures such as solar have given these measures a bad reputation by mis-selling systems that are over-priced because most people don’t have a benchmark against which they can compare prices.  A good energy saving strategy for a home will include a mixture of measures, including low-cost and no-cost measures.  A good advisor will highlight no-cost and low-cost measures such as heating control improvements, to win the confidence of the householder so they have a better understanding of a whole-house approach and don’t feel under pressure to spend money on things they don’t need.

Some householders believe that they need to fit every single energy saving technology available to make a difference.  This is not always the case.  A long-term energy saving plan will include measures that can be implemented now; measures that can be implemented in the next five years, and measures that can be implemented in the longer term.  This means that the householder doesn’t necessarily need to spend all of their money all at once.  Some householders (and businesses and public bodies) have a perception that they need to reach “net zero” by a certain date (e.g. 2030).  I do not wish to discourage people from aiming for net zero.  But there is always a pathway that a home needs to follow to get close to net zero in the future.  An abstract target at a date in the future can be paralysing.  Energy saving is all about goal setting, with interim milestones as well as long-term goals.  It’s the interim milestones that are empowering because they give people something achievable to aim for.  A good energy saving strategy for a house will identify the key measures that will make the biggest progress in approaching net zero.  It will also tell the householder what they shouldn’t do.  For example, “you need a PV system of 4 kW, not 8 kW”.  “You don’t have enough land for a ground source heat pump, but a properly designed heat pump will reduce your carbon emissions from heating by 80% (typically).”

5. I am going to do something else instead

Sometimes you will advise a householder to implement energy saving measures, and highlight the priority measures that will make the most difference; but instead they implement something that was much lower down your list of recommendations, and which will make less difference.  There are valid reasons why they might feel comfortable doing this.  This can be frustrating but use it as an opportunity to remind them of the long-term energy saving plan, and plant the seed in their mind that they might implement some of the other measures in future.  Energy saving schemes often have a short-term transactional approach, based on meeting a target (e.g. install 10,000 heat pumps in Anytown by 2025) that is meaningless to most people.  Householders don’t think that way.  There will be other opportunities for deeper energy saving interventions in that person’s life at some point in the future.  Make sure that they know that they can come back to you when that happens.  Let them know that you are interested in their future.

6. I have not heard of the installer

This is understandable.  There is a boom-bust cycle in energy saving due to the short-term initiatives of successive governments.  This leads to churn in the energy efficiency industry and makes it difficult for installers to establish a reputation.  I advise householders what to look out for in terms of accreditations, trading history, customer reviews; but this isn’t always enough.  What helps a householder to have confidence in an installer is when I advise the householder what to expect.  Some energy saving measures  (glazing, loft insulation, kitchen appliances, lighting) are relatively easy for regular householders to understand.  Some of the measures we need to achieve deep cuts in emissions (external wall insulation; heat pumps) are more complicated than householders are prepared for, and involve unfamiliar concepts and language.  It’s important to prepare householders for what will happen when someone comes to survey for these measures.  That gives the householder a benchmark against which to decide whether this installer is right for them or not.

7. I don’t have time for this; it’s disruptive

Undertaking significant energy saving improvements to a home can be time-consuming.  The time spent in gathering information and making decisions can be stressful.  A good advisor will provide a hand-holding service to householders.  This helps to create a psychologically safe space in which people can make major decisions about their home.  This means that they will feel that the time they spend is time well spent, rather than time wasted.

 

8. So what does “retrofit” actually mean?

I have seen energy saving schemes that  are good at the initial engagement of householders, and then at the end of what seems like a successful conversation, the householder says, “so what does retrofit actually mean?”  The word retrofit is of course jargon, it’s an unfamiliar term, that isn’t salient to most people’s experience.  I have tried to avoid it in this article.  We should think very carefully about the language we use.  

Do you really need to use the word “retrofit”?  Is there another word you can use instead?

 

It’s important to note that many of these objections apply whether the household is paying for the measures or not.  With the exception of the cost-based objections, all of them can and do appear whether the energy saving measures are self-funded or grant-funded.  That’s because they are rooted in genuine fear of what might go wrong; these objections should not be poo-pooed, but welcomed.  Those involved in advising householders on energy saving measures need to acquire sales skills that will help them deal with genuine objections in a way that centres the householder’s needs, rather than centring the scheme manager’s needs.

 

people thinking about bills

 

 

Energy confidence

 

Liz Truss’ policy on energy pricing will be a relief to many householders and businesses.  But it’s not a long-term answer to the energy crisis.  Only energy efficiency and renewable energy can save us from the triple dilemma of climate change, affordability, and energy security.

If energy prices are capped for a period, what this does is create a short window of opportunity for you to take action in your home or business that will give you long-term protection.

You have a short time to act and there are no quick fixes.

If you don’t know where to start, or what to do next, then my energy advice packages for householders and businesses can give you expert impartial advice.  I can help you to make informed decisions that mean that you can save energy in your home or business with confidence.  

YOUR GREEN BUSINESS

Consumers want to buy off businesses that are ethical and sustainable.  Tell me what makes your business great, and we will work together to make it greener and more profitable.

 

  • Expert advice on decarbonising your business
  • Independent and impartial 
  • What are the right measures for you?
  • Site visits, video meetings, thermal imaging
  • Energy saving and renewable energy
  • Energy procurement
  • Monitoring and reporting
  • Payment by instalments available

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • Energy saving expert advice
  • Independent and impartial 
  • Tell me about your home 
  • What are the right measures for you?
  • Site visits, Zoom meetings, thermal imaging
  • Payment by instalments available

 

YOUR GREEN HOME

Do you want to make your home greener but don’t know where to start?  Maybe you are thinking about insulation or a heat pump?  Book one of my energy saving advice packages  for independent and impartial advice on how to make your home greener.  I help you to make big decisions about the energy efficiency of your home in a psychologically safe space.

 

Update September 2022 – I now have some appointments available for householders from November  – if you can’t find a suitable date then please sign up to my mailing list and I will keep you informed.


  • Site visitswill be undertaken in accordance with sensible social distancing precautions.
  • Thermal imaging is available depending on the time of year – November-April is best for thermal imaging – if you book outside of these times then I will come back in the winter to do thermal imaging for you.

 

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Are you ready to be energy confident?

We face a Climate Emergency – you can make a difference

 

 

 

Phil with laptop

 

 

 

 

“What do you want to do about climate change?”

YOU’RE READY TO TAKE ACTION.

 

You’re here because you know that government and big business should do more, but you don’t want to wait for them.  You’re committed to do whatever you can.

What will you do next?  What help do you need from me?

Tell me about your home or your business, and I will advise you on a whole-building plan, looking at all the fabric of the building and its appliances.  I will show you how the ways people live, work, sleep, relax, wash, cook and eat in your building cause it to waste energy and water.  I will show you the right things you can do for your home, your family or co-workers, and for the planet.  I will also tell you if you’re doing any of the wrong things, and show you how to make changes.  

 

Working with me will give you:

  • Clarity on where to begin
  • Confidence that you are taking the right actions for your building
  • Cost-effective use of your money and resources
  • Carbon savings by implementing the right measures and monitoring their effectiveness.

Contact me now and let’s get you energy confident.

Phil Beardmore FRSA AIEMA, Low Carbon Coach and Founder, Energy Confidence 

 

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