About the project

This flagship project sees the eco-refurbishment of two properties in Reading

We’re refurbishing two old houses to improve their energy performance through better insulation and airtightness.

We believe that if CO₂ emissions can be reduced, running costs of our properties will fall. This will help create sustainable communities and reduce our residents’ fuel bills.

We plan to use the knowledge and experience gained from this project to inform value for money programmes of energy-efficient works across our stock.

By carrying out this work during major refurbishment programmes we estimate that the costs will be marginal in relation to the project costs, making up around 20 per cent of the total cost.

Cost house

In this house we’re keeping the costs of refurbishment as close as possible to that of a standard refurbishment while still meeting the design and product selection criteria.

The design of this house is simpler than in performance house, incorporating less expensive versions of microgeneration.

Performance house

In this house we are prioritising the performance of energy saving measures ahead of cost. This house demonstrates what measures we could use in our housing stock where grant funding is available.

The house has a wider range of features to optimise the building’s performance.

By monitoring CO₂ emissions in both houses we’ll identify value for money approaches and find out which measures achieve the biggest reductions in CO₂ for the price.

Improving the eco-efficiency of residents

The project will also look at the relationship between people and the built environment and feed into a review of how we can support Catalyst’s residents to become greener, save energy and reduce fuel costs.

Sharing our findings

We will produce findings and lessons learned that we’ll share with others to help them carry out energy-related work. The houses will also be used as demonstration projects for key groups such as residents, MPs, housing associations, local authorities, the construction industry and the press.