Housing Association of the Year Award winner
Warwickshire Rural Housing Association won ‘Regional Housing Association or Landlord of the Year’ at last night's West Midlands Energy Efficiency Awards 2025.
The prestigious award, which recognises one exceptional Housing Association or Landlord for their commitment to energy efficiency within their region, was awarded to the association in recognition of our retrofit decarbonisation works to make 53 rural homes warmer and more energy efficient.
The comprehensive retrofit programme, part-funded by the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF), included the installation of air source heat pumps (ASHP), increased loft insulation, humidistat extractor fans, and PV solar panels with battery storage. This investment of around £25,000 for each home, ensures they are warm, comfortable, and affordable to live in.
The 53 homes, which are off gas grid, have all now achieved a high ‘C’ Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating. And the impact on residents has been huge, with reduced energy bills, warmer homes and constant hot water. Anita, a WRHA resident said: “The works have definitely made a big impact on my household bills. I’m paying around £100 less than previously per month. And, the house is so much warmer than it was.”
As well as winning the ‘Regional Housing Association or Landlord of the Year’ award, we also received a Highly Commended Certificate in the ‘Regional Large Project of the Year’ category and a Commended Certificate in the ‘Regional Vulnerable Customer Support Organisation of the Year’ category.
Our success is due to a great team of passionate people, who always go the extra mile to help and support residents. The award celebrates the fantastic work of the team involved in the decarbonisation work - Michael Abell, Adam Boam and Tony Moore, supported by contractors including DR Consultancy and Sureserve Compliance Central – and the wider team at Warwickshire Rural Housing.
Michael Abell, Maintenance and Contracts Manager, said: "I’m delighted that the team’s hard work, passion and dedication has been recognised with these awards. We’re a small team and this is an amazing achievement.
“We’re really proud of what we’ve delivered. We’ve gone above and beyond to ensure that the upgrades improve our residents’ lives. The battery storage for the PV panels means households can store solar energy until they need it. That, together with the super-efficient ASHP systems, will significantly reduce each household’s energy bills.
“We’re continuing to invest significant resources into improving the efficiency of our rural homes and are on track for all our homes to achieve a minimum EPC C rating by 2028.”
Published: 28 Feb 2025
