Last week marked a milestone for the newly formed National Home Decarbonisation Group (NHDG) as we joined all members in gathering for the inaugural meeting.
From all over the UK, members converged in Birmingham to receive a welcome to the group from Derek Horrocks, the group’s chair, and the secretariat. Topical discussions took place on how to support the three pillars of the NHDG – policy, green skills and innovation. The day marked the beginning of the development of an operational plan to support the group’s mission to decarbonise UK’s current housing stock at scale.
We were represented by managing director Gary Lawson and decarbonisation manager Fiona Chestnutt – alongside our owner and chair Derek Horrocks who is also chair of the group.
NHDG members represent more than £10bn in turnover and the majority of large-scale residential retrofit decarbonisation delivery currently taking place, so the group offers a perfect forum for sharing best practice and ensuring the right industry voices are collaborating with government.
Gary said: “It was fantastic to be part of the National Home Decarbonisation Group’s first meeting after becoming a founding member earlier this year. It was a stimulating and interesting day, highlighting the opportunities we have as a business to collaborate with other leading tier one contractors working in the residential retrofit decarbonisation industry, energy providers and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ).
“There is more support and spend going into the retrofit industry than ever before so we’re sharing our voice on how to make sure this is best utilised and will support the millions of people that are suffering through the main crises of today – cost of living, health, energy and climate.
“We appreciate our role in leading the retrofit revolution, which comes with great responsibility, but we are confident that we have the expertise and experience to contribute to working groups on all of the group’s pillars – green skills, policy and innovation.”
The day itself involved an opening statement from the group chair, followed by an insightful talk from the director for net zero buildings, Selvin Brown, at DESNZ. Then the group’s members focussed on the operational plan before sharing thoughts in small focus groups on the residential retrofit industry’s greatest challenges.
Derek said: “The first NHDG meeting couldn’t have been more positive and there is a very real sense of opportunity and excitement around what the group can achieve. All members are invested in collaborating on best practice and making sure that the group does not become another talking shop.
“It was a privilege to be joined by two influential figures within the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, which demonstrates the importance of the group’s relationship with government. There are so many ways that policy, skills and innovation could be reshaped in the near future and my role within the group is to help facilitate a diverse range of opinions and ideas being considered.”
With each working group set to meet once per quarter moving forward, there is much more to come from the NHDG, and we look forward to being at the forefront of industry growth alongside our fellow members.
For more information on the NHDG, visit www.nhdg.org
