We have been awarded more than £2 million to continue the work which has seen us rated among the top 10 local authorities in the country for the energy efficiency of our council-owned homes.
The council, which has almost 6,000 council homes, successfully applied for funding from wave three of the Government’s Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund.
This will be used to support the installation of Air Source Heat Pumps and Solar PV systems to 204 properties which are currently rated EPC D or below, aiming to increase them to EPC band B, helping bring down the energy bills of its tenants.
EPC ratings measure a property's energy efficiency and provide a rating from A (most efficient) to G (least efficient).
The total funding awarded to Gravesham is £2.1 million, and the total project cost is £4.5 million over three years.
It will build on work over the previous five years that has seen the council rated by Uswitch as among the top 10 authorities in England, Wales and Scotland for energy-efficient social housing, with an energy efficiency score of 73.6.
Cllr Karina O’Malley, Gravesham Borough Council’s cabinet member for housing services, said: “Since 2020/21, our Housing Energy and Sustainability team has worked tirelessly to improve the energy efficiency of our council housing stock.
“The number of our properties at EPC C or above has increased from 57% to 82%, highlighting our commitment to sustainability, and meeting the government's target for all properties to reach EPC C by 2030.
“This improvement has directly contributed to a 20% reduction of the housing stock's carbon emissions.
“Just as importantly, we are also making a very real and positive difference to the energy bills of our tenants in the homes where the improvements are being made, helping them to save money.”