Tuesday 20 December 2016
The much-anticipated Each Home Counts – Bonfield Review has been published and considers issues relating to consumer protection, standards and enforcement, calling on government to back a quality mark for green home improvements.
The report was initially commissioned in July 2015 by former energy secretary Amber Rudd and former communities secretary Greg Clark, in the wake of the demise of the Green Deal. While the review does not go as far as laying out policy changes it does make 27 recommendations and proposes a single quality mark for all energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements to the home.
To obtain the mark, builders would need to show that they have been certified by an “approved certification body”, as well as meeting three key requirements:
- A consumer charter which guarantees certain levels of service
- A code of conduct for companies that will govern their behaviour and operations
- Codes of practice relevant to the installation of each measure to minimise the risk of poor-quality installation.
The Bonfield Review is right to focus on quality and the industry and consumers alike must welcome greater regulation that protects the customer and boosts standards.
The Construction Products Association (CPA) were delighted to be appointed as lead for the Insulation work stream and were represented by Peter Caplehorn, CPA Deputy Chief Executive and Policy Director. Chaired by Peter, the steering group identified a number of recommendations when implementing green measures, including:
- An appropriate design process that takes a holistic approach and considers the home, its local environment, heritage, occupancy, and the householders’ improvement objectives
- A process for gathering information and the design specification ahead of any installation of insulation or fabric measures; stored in the Data Warehouse for future use and to facilitate continuous improvement
- Ensure that the Insulation and Fabric workstream feeds into the standards, skills and quality assurance development processes, and that these reflect best practice.
Commenting on the review Dr Diana Montgomery, Chief Executive of the Construction Products Association, said: “Ensuring consumer protection is imperative as the industry looks towards improved home energy efficiency and renewable energy measures in the UK, and the Bonfield Review is a really valuable piece of research that will help us address these issues.
“The matter of energy efficiency is an important one for the CPA and we were delighted to lead one of the key work streams (for the insulation sector) to develop findings and consensus, and identify the subject areas for detailed consideration. This is a first step for us but it is in the best interest of those within our industry to continue working together and ensure recommendations are progressed.
“As outlined in the report, this marks the beginning, not the end, of the process, and the proposed recommendations will need to be implemented to achieve a sustainable sector. The CPA looks forward to working with its members and our colleagues across the wider construction supply chain to make this a success.”
The Each Home Counts review can be viewed here.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Emma Salmon, CPA Marketing and Communications Executive
Tel: 020 7323 3770
E-mail: emma.salmon@constructionproducts.org.uk
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