The Home Energy Conservation Act 1995 (HECA) 2023 report

The Home Energy Conservation Act 1995 (HECA) requires local authorities to report on their plans to promote energy efficiency improvements locally. Digital responses are submitted to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, and a copy can be found on the page below.

The HECA report closely aligns with the council's ambitions to reach Net Zero, as outlined in Kingston's Climate Action Plan. Relevant actions, such as improving the council's housing stock and promoting renewable energy sources to private households, closely coincide with the HECA requirements.

Work towards improving energy efficiency is ongoing. For example, the council was awarded funding to decarbonise 66 properties in 2023 and is currently implementing a number of measures on these properties, including solar panels, wall insulation, and loft insulation.

In winter 2022/2023, the council also promoted Warmer Homes grants to residents. The programme enabled 94 measures in 59 properties, including wall insulation in park homes and installation of solar panels.

You can find out more about the council’s work to tackle climate change on our dedicated web pages.

Headline and Overview

Does your Local Authority have a current strategy on carbon reduction and/or energy efficiency for domestic properties?

Yes

If yes, please provide a link. 

https://www.kingston.gov.uk/downloads/file/1694/kingston-s-climate-action-plan

In the last 2 years, what has been the cost (or estimated cost) of your energy efficiency and/or carbon reduction initiatives, schemes and services? Please consider the total cost of running and administering the scheme(s). Please input 0 if no schemes or initiatives has been implemented.

Records are unavailable.

Which, if any, of the following outcomes have been achieved through your energy efficiency and/or carbon initiatives, schemes and services?

Energy savings
Carbon savings
Alleviation of fuel poverty
Difficult to measure and quantify

Consumer Advice and Information

Do you provide or promote any advisory services to consumers on how to save energy?

Yes

If yes, please select all that apply;

Local Authority website
Local advisory service
‘Find ways to save energy in your home’ (formerly Simple Energy Advice) gov.uk website
‘Find ways to save energy in your home’ gov.uk phoneline
Leaflets
Social media
Other - please specify:

The council facilitates events to promote energy advice and stimulate demand for retrofit. See Kingston Efficient Homes Show in May 2023, Bitesize Retrofit event on 23 January 2024, Efficient Homes Show on 18 May 2024.

Local Retrofit Supply Chain

Have you conducted any assessment or analysis to understand the existing capacity in your local supply chain to support the decarbonisation of buildings by 2050?

Yes

If you answered yes to question 8, please summarise any specific bottlenecks (or provide a link if this information has been published).

An analysis of the supply chain across South London Boroughs (including Kingston) is currently being undertaken. The study is led by South London Partnership and it is funded by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.

Which, if any, of the following actions are you taking to upskill and/or grow your local retrofit installer supply chain? All of the below.

Supporting training provision at local training providers
Supporting FE colleges to improve facilities or train trainers or otherwise enable better delivery of retrofit training.
Providing installer networking opportunities or other business support for growing companies.
Careers advice or similar involving local businesses doing schools outreach to encourage young people into the sector.
Other (please state):

Facilitation of events to stimulate demand for retrofit. See Kingston Efficient Homes Show in May 2023, Bitesize Retrofit event on 23 January 2024, Efficient Homes Show on 18 May 2024.

A Design Lab event was organised on 6 September 2023 to understand the barriers to retrofit in collaboration with Kingston University, South London Partnership, local businesses operating in the retrofit sector and residents. The Design Lab was funded by the Business Innovation and Growth South London Programme.

Do you provide advice for your residents and small businesses about how to pick an installer business or how to avoid being mis-sold inappropriate improvements?

Yes, we provide training and information to businesses and signpost businesses and residents to reliable sources of information.

Has there been any Trading Standards activity against energy efficiency or home retrofit businesses in your area due to mis-selling or otherwise poorly advising consumers about retrofit measures?

No – resourcing constraints have curtailed potential activity

If you received funding under Local Authority Delivery, Home Upgrade Grant or Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, did availability of PAS 2030:2019 or MCS certified and TrustMark registered supply chain affect your ability to deliver?

Yes

If you answered yes, please can you tell us which parts of the supply chain were particularly affected (please select all that apply)?

Retrofit assessors
Retrofit coordinators

If you answered yes please can you tell us, what actions did you take to overcome those barriers (please select all that apply)?

Using a main contractor and requiring them to source suitably certified supply chain (either through contracting or training up their own staff)

Social Housing Decarbonisation

Did you apply to the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF) Wave 2.1?

Yes, and successful in securing funding

Which, if any, of the following motivated you to apply for SHDF Wave 2.1? Please select all that apply.

Financial support for retrofit
Tenant needs
Expectations of future energy performance regulations

Have you carried out/planned to carry out any retrofit work in absence of SHDF funding?

Yes

If yes, how is this funded/how would this be funded?

Internal funding
Funding from other Government schemes

How many of your social housing partners are you aware applied for the SHDF?

N/A (none)

Domestic Private Rented Sector (PRS) Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) Regulations

Do you enforce the PRS MEES Regulations in domestic tenancies?

Yes

Do you use the PRS MEES Exemption Register?

Yes

Are you aware of the PRS MEES draft toolkit for supporting local authorities?

Yes, and it has been used

In the past 2 years, how many domestic private rented properties have you engaged with in respect to enforcement of the PRS MEES Regulations?

Please enter the amount /estimated amount

Estimated: 5 properties

In the past 2 years, how many domestic private rented properties have you found to be non-compliant?

Please enter the amount /estimated amount.

Estimated: 25 properties

In the last 2 years, how many non-compliant properties have been improved to EPC Band E after you have engaged with them?

Please enter the amount /estimated amount.

25 properties

How many compliance notices have you issued in the past 2 years for non-compliance of the PRS MEES Regulations?

Please enter the amount /estimated amount.

No formal notices served

Green Home Finance

What programmes, if any, do you have to promote domestic energy efficiency improvements for those who are able to pay? Please provide links to any relevant online materials.

N/A

Do you take any steps to raise awareness of the availability of private financing options (such as green mortgages) to fund retrofit works?

Do you refer homeowners interested in energy efficiency to retail lenders offering green finance products?

Fuel Poverty

Does your Local Authority have a Fuel Poverty Strategy?

How do you identify fuel poor households?

Used local data sets on energy efficiency/housing
Used local data sets on household income
Campaigns to encourage potential households to reach out
Used benefits data

What actions are you taking to reduce fuel poverty in your area?

Delivery of government wide schemes such as the Home Upgrade Grant or Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund.
Actions to increase financial support to low income or vulnerable households.
Other - Kingston’s Warm Home, Better Health Service is a Council programme that aims to tackle energy efficiency, fuel poverty and enhance the wellbeing of vulnerable residents in Kingston. The service provides energy assessments, small energy measures installation, crisis support, and onward casework support. It also collaborates with various stakeholders and promotes behaviour change. The WHBH Service has achieved significant impact, including reducing carbon emissions, improving household energy efficiency, and enhancing the health and wellbeing of residents.

Does fuel poverty interlink with your local authority’s overall Carbon Reduction Strategy?

Yes. Action 1.16 in Kingston’s Climate Action Plan states to ‘Create accurate mapping of fuel poor households against poor energy efficient homes to target funding which can improve the energy efficiency of homes for those where improvements could see the biggest benefits.’ Progress on this is frequently reviewed.

Local Authority Delivery

If your local authority did not apply for funding from the Local Authority Delivery scheme, please indicate which barrier(s) prevented you from applying.

LAD 3 funding was secured by residents directly through the Greater London Authority’s Warmer Homes programme.

Does your local authority have access to good quality housing data for on-gas properties?

Yes

If no, please specify what is lacking.

N/A

Home Upgrade Grant

If your local authority did not apply for funding from the Home Upgrade Grant, please indicate which barrier(s) prevented you from applying.

Kingston Council joined a HUG2 consortium led by the Greater London Authority and London Councils due to a lack of capacity and capability. However Kingston was later not included in the HUG2 delivery.

Does your local authority have access to good quality housing data for off-gas properties?

Yes

The Energy Company Obligation (ECO)

Did your local authority have a published Statement of Intent (SoI) for ECO flexibility eligibility under ECO3, during 2022?

No - Kingston Council was covered by the GLA SoI - https://www.london.gov.uk/energy-company-obligation-and-flexible-eligibility

ECO3 declarations were undertaken by Lewisham Council on behalf of Kingston Council.

Please answer the following questions to help us to understand LA Flex delivery in more detail during the course of 2022:

How many declarations were issued for low-income vulnerable households during ECO3?

How many declarations were issued for Fuel Poor households under ECO3?

How many declarations were issued for in-fill under ECO3?

What was the highest income cap published in your SoI?

£27,800

Did you charge for declarations to be signed?

ECO4 commenced in July 2022, has your local authority published a Statement of Intent (SoI) for ECO flexibility eligibility under ECO4?

No - Kingston Council is covered by the GLA SoI - https://www.london.gov.uk/energy-company-obligation-and-flexible-eligibility

If ‘No’ are there any specific barriers preventing you, from publishing and participating in the scheme?

The Greater London Authority signed an SoI on behalf of London boroughs.

Barriers:

Administration and resource constraints
Risk of reputational damage
Lack of local supply chain/infrastructure
Limitations of ECO requirements (e.g. cost caps, band improvement requirements) - without additional funding ECO eligibility is too constrained

Do you directly engage with energy suppliers either for ECO Flex (or other domestic energy efficiency schemes?

Smart Metering

The following questions refer to smart metering advice. Please provide any additional details where possible.

Do you provide smart metering advice when implementing energy efficiency improvements (including through grant schemes such as the Energy Company Obligation and the Home Upgrade Grant) in residential accommodation?

If no, please explain why not, and what plans will be put in place to implement this.

The Council does not currently deliver energy efficiency schemes for private properties and therefore does not directly engage with residents on smart meters as part of such schemes. However, the Council actively promotes the Energy Saving Trust and Energy Advice London web pages, which provide advice on smart meters. Going forward, smart metering advice will be more actively integrated into the Council’s energy advice communications across tenures.

Do you encourage landlords to promote smart meter uptake, e.g., landlord licencing schemes.

If no, please explain why not, and what plans will be put in place to implement this.

Licensing requirements are currently limited to HMOs. The Council will consider including smart meters in licensing conditions of HMO licensing.

Do you arrange for smart meters to be installed by energy suppliers in vacant social housing premises?

If no, please explain why not, and what plans will be put in place to implement this.

Residents source their own energy providers and whichever company they choose will be responsible for supplying the meter.

Last Modified: 27/02/2024 14:37:45

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