Your residents don’t care about net zero.
Introduction
Often, in the complicated process of getting a decarbonisation project off the ground, social housing asset managers forget the most important part. While net zero is an organisational goal, decarbonisation in social housing is meant to benefit one person: the resident.
You could spend months securing decarbonisation funding, project planning, securing contractors and stock. But the biggest delay to a project can often come in the form of uninformed and unhappy residents.
If you have had, or are currently having this issue, this blog is for you. We’ll be helping you understand your residents’ resistance, and offering solutions that are good for you and your residents.
Why resident buy-in is critical to retrofit success
“I don’t really care about that net zero nonsense.”
– Direct quote from one of our client’s residents when we sat down with them recently.
For the client in question, we’ve run several successful large-scale decarbonisation projects across their council district – take a look at the case study. We’ve helped them with their residents in each project, so we’ve got to know why residents can be so resistant.
Fortunately, we’ve not come across many issues we haven’t been able to handle. But for some projects, serious delays are the reality. Residents who are unhappy with decarbonisation projects have blocked access to their homes. They can be particularly uncooperative, causing contractor delays and cost overruns. Things that can sometimes cause projects to be abandoned completely.
But residents are not doing this to cause problems. They are often people who have lived in their homes a long time, and any change can be upsetting. Everyone has the right to feel safe and secure in their homes.
And it isn’t just noise that can be disruptive in a decarbonisation project. With solar panel installations, scaffolding is usually needed, and this can block residents’ windows and access, as well as posing security, and health and safety concerns.
Other installations can lead to concerns in the home, such as mess and interruptions to a resident’s daily life.
Given residents are sometimes not consulted about renewable upgrades, these interruptions can seem random and not beneficial.
The real reasons residents resist renewable upgrades
The invasion of their routines and homes aside, residents don’t always understand why. They don’t think changes will benefit them, especially after previous poor upgrades.
In the case of our client, new and efficient storage heaters were installed by another installer a few years prior. The residents weren’t educated on how best to use these, causing a resident to have a £9 per day heating bill!
After this, these residents have been very sceptical about any other upgrades. Residents’ concerns are about their own comfort and costs, rather than carbon emissions.
Lessons from a resident engagement morning
As part of any decarbonisation project we carry out, we have regular resident engagement sessions. The goal of this is not to force residents on-side, but simply to help them understand why we’re doing this, and how they will benefit.
In our most recent session with our client, the residents were resistant. The complaints were familiar. Project length, disruption and cost were concerns. They were worried that the storage heater installations would ruin their living rooms and that the installation teams wouldn’t clean up after themselves.
The residents’ priorities aren’t about net zero or how they can reduce their carbon footprints. They are struggling to heat their homes and keep food on the table in the midst of a cost of living crisis that only seems to be getting worse.
Three ways to build resident trust
We’ve installed many retrofit projects in social housing, and we’ve come up against the same resistance every time, so we’ve come up with a few ways to help residents understand how they can benefit from the project.
- De-mystify the technology
The first thing we do is help the residents understand what we’re installing and why. We frame it in their language; talking about lower bills, more control over their heating and costs, and smart heating to make their lives easier and more comfortable.
We used clear and simple explanations with visuals and videos, and gave plenty of time for any questions the residents might have.
- Listen and take concerns seriously
Which takes us to the second part of our process. We always make sure we’re available for coffee mornings listen to residents. We also have dedicated phone lines for each decarbonisation project so that residents can call us 24/7 with any concerns.
- Keep them informed
Finally, we keep the residents up to date with any site news. We let them know the projected program timelines, and make sure to inform them of any schedule changes.
If they’re having scaffolding or internal works, we coordinate this with them to make sure they have access when they need it. We’ll also make sure to give advance warning for any noisy works to reduce disruption.
The cost of ignoring resident communication
Through some trial and error, we’ve managed to keep residents across any of our retrofit projects on-side. So, we’ve not seen first hand the cost of not listening to your residents, but others have.
When projects are delayed due to access issues, the costs mount every day. Milestones are missed, and the whole supply chain suffers.
Residents can go online to cause reputational damage, and all these costly delays can cause funding to be lost when KPIs aren’t met.
The right way to deliver retrofit in social housing
We believe retrofit success is only achieved through a balance of technical expertise and a resident-first approach. Keeping communication lines open and having an on-site resident liaison keeps a project moving smoothly.
Post-install, we make sure to spend some time with residents giving them in-person demonstrations on their new equipment, as well as giving them handbooks and videos to refer back to if needed.
This approach reduces fault calls, and helps residents feel comfortable with their new renewable technologies. It often saves them money too – they can optimise their heating systems for lower grid rates, or use high-energy appliances in the day time when their solar panels are providing free energy.
Outcomes are often measurable. Residents report higher energy savings and higher satisfaction levels. Access problems don’t occur, so delays are non-existent, meaning the client keeps their funding and the project is completed on time.
Conclusion
It’s important for asset managers not to discount residents in upgrade or retrofit programs. Residents are not out to delay projects, but the disruption can make their lives very difficult.
With the right communication, these upgrades can make a real difference, not only for the residents but for the environment. Prioritising this makes for a smooth retrofit project.
Ready to make your retrofit programme easier, faster and more resident-friendly? Talk to Carbon3 today about our resident engagement and retrofit delivery support.
Introduction
Often, in the complicated process of getting a decarbonisation project off the ground, social housing asset managers forget the most important part. While net zero is an organisational goal, decarbonisation in social housing is meant to benefit one person: the resident.
You could spend months securing decarbonisation funding, project planning, securing contractors and stock. But the biggest delay to a project can often come in the form of uninformed and unhappy residents.
If you have had, or are currently having this issue, this blog is for you. We’ll be helping you understand your residents’ resistance, and offering solutions that are good for you and your residents.
Why resident buy-in is critical to retrofit success
“I don’t really care about that net zero nonsense.”
– Direct quote from one of our client’s residents when we sat down with them recently.
For the client in question, we’ve run several successful large-scale decarbonisation projects across their council district – take a look at the case study. We’ve helped them with their residents in each project, so we’ve got to know why residents can be so resistant.
Fortunately, we’ve not come across many issues we haven’t been able to handle. But for some projects, serious delays are the reality. Residents who are unhappy with decarbonisation projects have blocked access to their homes. They can be particularly uncooperative, causing contractor delays and cost overruns. Things that can sometimes cause projects to be abandoned completely.
But residents are not doing this to cause problems. They are often people who have lived in their homes a long time, and any change can be upsetting. Everyone has the right to feel safe and secure in their homes.
And it isn’t just noise that can be disruptive in a decarbonisation project. With solar panel installations, scaffolding is usually needed, and this can block residents’ windows and access, as well as posing security, and health and safety concerns.
Other installations can lead to concerns in the home, such as mess and interruptions to a resident’s daily life.
Given residents are sometimes not consulted about renewable upgrades, these interruptions can seem random and not beneficial.
The real reasons residents resist renewable upgrades
The invasion of their routines and homes aside, residents don’t always understand why. They don’t think changes will benefit them, especially after previous poor upgrades.
In the case of our client, new and efficient storage heaters were installed by another installer a few years prior. The residents weren’t educated on how best to use these, causing a resident to have a £9 per day heating bill!
After this, these residents have been very sceptical about any other upgrades. Residents’ concerns are about their own comfort and costs, rather than carbon emissions.
Lessons from a resident engagement morning
As part of any decarbonisation project we carry out, we have regular resident engagement sessions. The goal of this is not to force residents on-side, but simply to help them understand why we’re doing this, and how they will benefit.
In our most recent session with our client, the residents were resistant. The complaints were familiar. Project length, disruption and cost were concerns. They were worried that the storage heater installations would ruin their living rooms and that the installation teams wouldn’t clean up after themselves.
The residents’ priorities aren’t about net zero or how they can reduce their carbon footprints. They are struggling to heat their homes and keep food on the table in the midst of a cost of living crisis that only seems to be getting worse.
Three ways to build resident trust
We’ve installed many retrofit projects in social housing, and we’ve come up against the same resistance every time, so we’ve come up with a few ways to help residents understand how they can benefit from the project.
- De-mystify the technology
The first thing we do is help the residents understand what we’re installing and why. We frame it in their language; talking about lower bills, more control over their heating and costs, and smart heating to make their lives easier and more comfortable.
We used clear and simple explanations with visuals and videos, and gave plenty of time for any questions the residents might have.
- Listen and take concerns seriously
Which takes us to the second part of our process. We always make sure we’re available for coffee mornings listen to residents. We also have dedicated phone lines for each decarbonisation project so that residents can call us 24/7 with any concerns.
- Keep them informed
Finally, we keep the residents up to date with any site news. We let them know the projected program timelines, and make sure to inform them of any schedule changes.
If they’re having scaffolding or internal works, we coordinate this with them to make sure they have access when they need it. We’ll also make sure to give advance warning for any noisy works to reduce disruption.
The cost of ignoring resident communication
Through some trial and error, we’ve managed to keep residents across any of our retrofit projects on-side. So, we’ve not seen first hand the cost of not listening to your residents, but others have.
When projects are delayed due to access issues, the costs mount every day. Milestones are missed, and the whole supply chain suffers.
Residents can go online to cause reputational damage, and all these costly delays can cause funding to be lost when KPIs aren’t met.
The right way to deliver retrofit in social housing
We believe retrofit success is only achieved through a balance of technical expertise and a resident-first approach. Keeping communication lines open and having an on-site resident liaison keeps a project moving smoothly.
Post-install, we make sure to spend some time with residents giving them in-person demonstrations on their new equipment, as well as giving them handbooks and videos to refer back to if needed.
This approach reduces fault calls, and helps residents feel comfortable with their new renewable technologies. It often saves them money too – they can optimise their heating systems for lower grid rates, or use high-energy appliances in the day time when their solar panels are providing free energy.
Outcomes are often measurable. Residents report higher energy savings and higher satisfaction levels. Access problems don’t occur, so delays are non-existent, meaning the client keeps their funding and the project is completed on time.
Conclusion
It’s important for asset managers not to discount residents in upgrade or retrofit programs. Residents are not out to delay projects, but the disruption can make their lives very difficult.
With the right communication, these upgrades can make a real difference, not only for the residents but for the environment. Prioritising this makes for a smooth retrofit project.
Ready to make your retrofit programme easier, faster and more resident-friendly? Talk to Carbon3 today about our resident engagement and retrofit delivery support.