Are we looking at net zero in the right way?
Inside Housing speaks to Jason Longhurst, chair of the UK Business Council for Sustainable Development, to find out why he thinks the sector’s focus on zero-carbon homes risks being too blinkered
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Today, many social housing residents are having to choose between heating and eating. Decarbonising stock can play a significant role in tackling fuel poverty, but research by South East Consortium (SEC), a not-for-profit organisation that provides frameworks for the sector, in partnership with the UK Business Council for Sustainable Development (UKBCSD) and industry stakeholders, argues that the sector must not get caught in a zero-carbon tunnel, and that progress should be made through sound investment in buildings that isn’t focused on, or governed by, technical definitions.
We speak to Jason Longhurst, chair of UKBCSD, about the switch towards greener, safer, affordable and more comfortable homes.
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Do you think the focus on zero-carbon homes is flawed?
Any step along this road is a positive step – but we need to adopt a holistic approach to our housing need to ensure it is sustainable, both now and into the future. The focus is too narrow, as things stand; too many of us are wearing ‘net zero blinkers’. These constrain innovation and limit the positive impacts we could have on new and existing homes. The pandemic, inflation and energy instability all tell us that homes need to be adaptable and sustainable; they need to offer more than just energy efficiency or a reduction in carbon emissions. We must also take quality of life into account so that we can develop approaches to prevent issues such as damp and mould, while also ensuring homes are water and energy efficient, and environmentally sustainable.
Why do we need to reset the focus of decarbonisation?
We can ditch the net zero blinkers by adopting a sustainable living approach. This is a whole-system or whole-sector approach that avoids the net zero blind spot of focusing purely on decarbonisation. It requires a wider range of measures within the housing sector, in both new build homes and existing stock, that go beyond net zero to ensure we have sustainable and healthy homes that respond to people, communities and the environment.
SEC is working on a ‘sustainable living standard’. How will it differ from net zero?
The sustainable living standard is intended to set out a common decarbonisation goal centred around residents rather than the fabric around them. Its focus is emotive, rather than technical, and it can be aimed towards or even beyond net zero, rather than stopping at that line. It also moves us away from chasing any of the 107 (and counting) definitions of net zero that are circulating in the UK housing market, which are in danger of creating needless complexity and supply chain pandemonium.
Jason Longhurst is chair and CEO of the UK Business Council for Sustainable Development, and UK head of sustainable investment and development at Prologis. He sits on both the UK Business Group Alliance for Net Zero and the government’s SME Net Zero Working Group, influencing solutions for the sector’s future.
What have you learned from your research into switching the focus to sustainable living?
This approach presents a greater opportunity to enhance residents’ quality of life in a shorter time period. It shapes the adaptability and sustainability of homes now and into the future, including expanding how we future-proof stock. Removing the net zero blinkers makes decarbonisation more inclusive and investable – from residents on the doorstep to directors in the boardroom. Delivering sustainable homes must meet and go beyond net zero in delivering and exceeding targets that address all the sustainable development goals and climate targets. This has to be about shared, measurable and multiple outcome benefits – not tick-box net zero.
How would this switch benefit social landlords?
It would ensure an investable transition into new build and existing stock that shifts focus from high-cost, short-term net zero programmes into a long-term business strategy that is founded on sustainable outcomes. The sustainable living approach also gives providers the ability to plan over the medium to long-term, while helping to replace the existing short-term funding mechanism with an ‘infinite transition’ model that unlocks new green investment opportunities from private institutions and global funds. In short, it will create a new ‘green housing economy’.
How would it benefit residents?
This approach ensures houses become homes that are adaptable to current and future needs. They will be made retrofit-ready as early as the planning and management stages, ensuring homes are responsive to residents’ needs – and thus enabling their buy-in over the longer term. Education, support and training will be provided to residents as new technology plays a greater part in sustainable living and building management – with residents getting a greater say over the sustainable benefits to their homes.
In numbers
2030
Target for all social housing to be Energy Performance Certificate Band C
2050
Target for all homes to be net zero
What will the impact be on companies in the supply chain?
The sustainable living approach addresses the skill and knowledge gaps throughout the supply chain, including the pressures of short-term ‘pilot’ programmes. This development and upskilling within the supply chain will be aligned to long-term investment and growth, and it will give firms the confidence to transition traditional skills into new and advanced development and construction approaches. It will also drive a new green supply chain and procurement model that is sustainable and that delivers outcomes as planned.
What steps should organisations take to start adopting a sustainable homes strategy?
Organisations should start to apply a smart maintenance approach to their existing asset management. They should adopt sustainable homes guidance on all new build housing, and formulate a business plan that focuses on a sustainable transition of all stock, new and old, so as to maximise their investment over the longer term. Finally, they should consider moving away from short-term ‘pilot’ funding pots that can disrupt efforts to achieve or go beyond current targets, and that consistently underperform according to their own metrics of success.
How might the sector agree on and adopt this new focus as a common goal?
The sector needs to step up to global and national commitments for 2030 and 2050, underpinned by current and emerging UK policy, by setting a new sustainable homes approach – and putting this proposal to the government as a model that is investable over the longer term. A sector-wide goal should be to go beyond net zero with a long-term plan to deliver sustainable homes that exceeds one-off funding programmes. Feasibility should be considered as ‘investable’. The sector needs a sustainable approach that transitions stock and ensures new build is fit for purpose and future-ready, underpinned by long-term investment programmes. Cross-sector innovation that expands sustainability and learning that drives down costs, enhances skills and secures investable programmes defined by the sector should be rewarded. And we need a shift away from following government targets towards a scenario in which the sector takes the lead, with the government acting as the enabler.
