Thousands of Islington households are looking forward to warmer homes and lower fuel bills - starting this winter - thanks to a successful multi-million pound bid by Islington Council and Homes for Islington (HfI).
The Homes and Community Agency (HCA) money will be spent on cavity wall insulation for Islington Council residents.
The council was awarded £4.35m to spend on insulating over 6,500 homes during the next two years. Islington received the third largest sum for an individual borough from the HCA’s national insulation programme.
Cllr Barbara Smith, Executive Member for Housing and Community Safety, Islington Council said:
"Council residents can spend a high proportion of their household income on heating and power.
"This free insulation will bring these costs down and take more people out of fuel poverty while also reducing carbon emissions."
Insulating cavity walls will save about £130 each year in fuel costs for every household. It also combats climate change's rise in summer temperatures because the insulation helps keep homes cooler during heatwaves.
The council’s residents are some of the most 'fuel poor' households in the borough. The new insulation will mean that these vulnerable households will need to spend less to keep warm in winter.
The cavity wall insulation will be available to homes in buildings up to five storeys, subject to survey.
Following the works, the carbon emissions from each property will reduce by approximately 700kg. This will reduce each home’s carbon emissions by approximately 15 per cent.
Over the next five years the new insulation will reduce the borough’s carbon emissions by 23,000 tonnes. This is the equivalent to the emissions produced by over 5,000 homes.
Eamon McGoldrick, HFI chief executive said: "This is good news for residents of Islington.
"This will allow us to upgrade the insulation of a significant percentage of the housing stock, improving the energy efficiency of the buildings, reducing residents' heating bills and increasing the warmth of the properties."
ENDS
Page Last Updated: 28 August 2009