The Sunday Times - UK (2022-04-24)

4 April 24, 2022The Sunday Times

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overconfidence in heat

pumps. Although the

technology is improving,

it is not the answer for

reaching net zero and nor is

it a cheap alternative

for gas boilers.

For many

homes, installing

a heat pump

will mean

rebuilding the

central heating

system — you’ll

need new

radiators (double

the size of the old

ones), underfloor heating

and layers of insulation. It

could cost up to £30,000 to

install them. The worry is that

with money flooding the

market you get a wave of failed

heat-pump installations — units

hooked up and not configured

properly. Then we’re back to

square one with poorly

designed and built facilities

and everybody complaining

about cowboy builders.

If we’re serious about

improving housing stock,

stopping cowboy builders

and having a green building

revolution, something has to

give — perhaps it’s time to

revisit ideas such as licensing

for tradespeople and builders.

fixradio.co.uk

professionals in place. You can

throw as much money as you

like at it, but without a plan, or

well-trained tradespeople to

do the work, the ship is holed

below the Plimsoll line

before it sets sail.

The £1.5 billion

Green Grant

launched in

2020 was a

“slam dunk

fail” according

to the public

accounts

committee.

For example, the

first issue of £50 million to

insulate the exterior of a

property involved a voucher

scheme that offered between

£5,000 and £10,000 if the

homeowner met the income

criteria. In some cases the

whole cost would be covered.

Understandably, it became

oversubscribed.

The few trained companies

capable of carrying out the

work were deluged with

applications and in many

cases payments were delayed.

It was, quite simply, a mess.

Will the government’s

boiler upgrade scheme fare

any better? I spoke to two

councils about the schemes

on offer and they didn’t have a

clue. Perhaps more worrying

is the government’s

industry is as keen as anyone

to help the planet. We hear

stories of new exterior renders

designed to mop up carbon

emissions like trees. So

what’s happening?

The country’s old housing

stock and the people living

in these old houses are in

desperate need of help. The

recent spike in energy prices

could put as much as 40 per

cent of the population into

fuel poverty. The rate of

heat loss in old, uninsulated

properties, particularly

those without cavity walls,

is devastating.

The failure of the initial

green grant schemes was

the result of a lack of proper

planning and having trained

Successive governments have

ignored the idea of licences

and other regulation in the

building trades, preferring the

market to dictate the cost of

services. That has allowed

“cowboy builders” to thrive.

I’ve visited many of these

sites over the years and

witnessed the problems as

well as listened to the tearful

stories of homebuyers

whose dream of owning a

shiny new home has been left

in tatters. While the problem

continues, the number of

“snagging lawyers” and

property dispute specialists

will increase.

We also need more firm

action on green building

regulations. Most of our

T

he race is on

to meet the

government target

to build up to

300,000 homes

a year. However, the term

“race” is part of the problem.

In a rush to build, corners

are being cut and errors are

inevitable, with builders and

tradespeople under time

pressure to meet unrealistic

targets. Poor planning and

layouts add to the failures.

This is why, despite the UK

being home to some of the

finest tradespeople in the

world, we still hear horror

stories about poor-quality

buildings. Some of the larger

housebuilders already set

aside millions of pounds in

advance of a site commencing

work because they know there

will be failures that will need

rectifying. Throwing money

at it is one way of solving

the problem, but it doesn’t

address the underlying issues

of who is responsible and how

we can improve quality.

One answer could be

licensing builders and

tradespeople. This already

happens in much of Europe. If

the company or tradesperson

falls short of expectation, the

regulatory body revokes their

licence. This would sharpen

the minds of developers and

builders alike. Yes, we have

the National House Building

Council, but it has over the

years lost much of its bite.

TIME TO

LICENSE

BUILDERS

It’s the only way to avoid the

horror stories. By Clive Holland (^) Clive Holland, right, hosts Fix Radio’s mid-afternoon show
ALICE MARSH/ALAMY