Municipality plans for largest-ever investment in residential property development

In a significant move towards a greener future, Manchester City Council has successfully secured a £60m investment for an energy efficiency and decent homes programme. This investment, the largest in low carbon retrofit works in Manchester's history, aims to transform over 2,100 homes in the city.

The funding, which comes from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), will be allocated in various ways. £49.7m will be invested into 1,603 council-owned properties for energy efficiency works, while a total of £10m from DESNZ's Home Upgrade Grant fund will be allocated to improve the EPC rating of 500 privately owned homes in Manchester.

The works, requiring direct collaboration with Council tenants and private homeowners, will focus on improving the energy efficiency of homes. This includes better roof and wall insulation, solar panelling, new boilers or heating systems, and air and ground heat pumps. The targeted properties do not use gas as their main heating fuel and meet other criteria set by DESNZ.

The funding aims to upgrade the energy efficiency of 500 privately owned homes in Manchester from an EPC D rating or below to a C rating. This is part of a broader initiative to make homes warmer, healthier, more efficient, and cheaper to run for residents. However, the works may cause some short-term disruption.

Cllr Gavin White, Manchester City Council's executive member for housing and development, emphasised the need for residents to participate in this journey towards more energy-efficient homes. He stated that housing is a major source of carbon usage, and investing in energy efficiency measures is a key element of Manchester's journey to become a zero-carbon city by 2038.

The funding will also be used for decent home investments, including building safety and fire safety work. Manchester City Council aims to retrofit 60% of its 16,000 council-owned homes by 2032. The challenge of reducing Manchester's carbon emissions is significant, with around 70,000 social rented homes in the city.

Nationally, there is little funding for council-owned homes, requiring local authorities to pay for retrofitting works through their Capital Programme and Housing Revenue Accounts. In this case, £11.6m comes from DESNZ's Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund and £38m is from the Council's capital programme.

Cllr White also highlighted that the search results do not contain information about which organization provided the £10 million funding to improve energy efficiency in privately owned houses in Manchester. Despite this, the council is seeking approval for the final funding of the energy efficiency and decent homes programme, marking a significant step forward in Manchester's mission to become a net-zero city.

Municipality plans for largest-ever investment in residential property development