North East Mayor commends believe housing’s energy upgrades

The initiative, led by the not-for-profit landlord, believe housing, was applauded by North East Mayor Kim McGuinness for its contributions towards reducing household bills, alleviating poverty, and fostering a greener future.

Mayor McGuinness said: “I am committed to making the North East the home of real opportunity.

“To do that we must support the thousands of families across our region who are struggling with fuel poverty and make sure everyone has a warm home they’re proud of.

“That’s why it’s great to see organisations like believe housing building sustainable homes and making thousands of energy upgrades to houses in the North East, helping their customers keep more money in their pockets.

“As Mayor, I will scale up our retrofitting industry with more jobs, reinforcing our region as a leader in green energy.

“That will mean skilled green jobs for local people, upgrading homes across our communities.”

Mayor Kim talks to Alan Smith and John Marshall (Image: Supplied) During her visit to believe housing, the Mayor was briefed on the ongoing projects aimed at improving the existing homes.

This includes ensuring every property achieves at least an EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) rating of C, making them warmer, greener, and more cost-effective for residents.

The association also delivers around 200 energy-efficient new homes each year.

The mayor was also informed about the long-term investment in social housing and its role in fostering green job creation and bolstering economic growth in the area.

Representatives from RE:GEN Group, believe housing’s delivery partner for energy improvement works, stated that the ongoing investment gives them the confidence to expand their skilled workforce, enabling them to continue delivering upgrades and support the region’s shift to a greener economy.

The Mayor also visited a customer of believe housing, Val Singleton, at her home in Crook.

Her house has recently benefited from improvement and decarbonisation works, including a new roof with solar panels and enhanced loft insulation.

Val’s home is one of the 3,477 houses under believe housing that have received energy efficiency upgrades.

The Mayor was briefed about ongoing projects (Image: Supplied) The North East Mayor said: “It was lovely to meet Val, whose home is one of many that have already been fitted with energy efficiency upgrades, including solar panels and insulation, not only making her home warmer, but reducing her heating bills too.

“We are already making it easier for people in County Durham to get the advice they need to reduce their bills.

“I am working closely with the industry to increase the supply of sustainable social housing, and retrofit more homes across the North East to help more people, like Val, save on their energy bills.”

Read more:

Alan Smith, Chief Executive of believe housing, said: “We welcome the opportunity to show the Mayor some of our work and to talk about how it supports her missions for the region — creating a stronger, fairer economy, generating job opportunities, tackling poverty, and advancing green energy.

“We also discussed the wider challenges facing the social housing sector and how we can work together with the North East Combined Authority, through the North East Housing Partnership, to do even more to make our region a better place to live and work.”

The North East Housing Partnership consists of social housing providers and local authorities, working in unison to support the North East Mayoral Combined Authority in delivering a housing plan aimed at driving inclusive economic growth.