Vaillant is set to host a series of UK-wide open days to demonstrate the role of renewable technology in reducing fuel poverty and carbon emissions for the social housing sector to landlords, renewables installers and councils.
The Sustainable Heating days will be held at Vaillant’s head office in Belper, Derbyshire; Centres of Excellence, in Elland, West Yorkshire; Bristol; Cambridge; Maidstone; and Scotland, from February 13, 2014. The events will focus on educating landlords on how to access government funding and examples of Vaillant renewables projects to show the technology in action.
Speeches will be given by guest speakers from partners and the Department of Energy and Climate Change. A prize draw of £1,000 towards a community investment fund for landlords will be held at the close of each event.
The focus on helping landlords to obtain funding is extremely timely, following the publication of recent research by Alliance Procurement, the National Energy Foundation and the University of Salford. The research found that the lack of funding support remains the highest barrier to retrofitting in the social housing sector. Approximately 37% of landlords said addressing fuel poverty and reducing fuel bills for tenants were their key drivers for considering a retrofit.
John Bailey, commercial and renewables system director at Vaillant, said:
Renewable technology can deliver significant savings for the social housing sector, and play a significant role in reducing fuel poverty. It’s extremely rewarding to share our renewable expertise with this audience as part of our commitment to the social housing sector.
Training dates:
Elland, Yorkshire: February 13
Belper, Derbyshire: February 18
Bristol: February 20
Cambridge: February 25
Maidstone: February 26
Scotland: March 4