Sustainability
Sustainability
Creating sustainable and energy efficient homes, neighbourhoods and a sustainable business is fundamental to delivering our purpose.
Our 2030 plan includes our priority to provide safe and warm homes for residents. We want to provide homes and places residents are proud of and help create a more sustainable future for the neighbourhoods where we work.
Our approach
From our 2022 Group Carbon Audit, we know that 93% of organisational carbon emissions originate from our housing stock. With responsibility for over 10,000 homes, our strategy for building, retrofitting and maintenance is key to managing these emissions. We are working to achieve the government’s target of all homes achieving EPC Band C by 2030. At the end of March 2025, 74% of our homes are at Band C and we have clear plans in place to increase this over the coming years.
Working in partnership
We have recently completed the second year of funding secured through the Government’s Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund [SHDF] wave 2. We secured this funding as part of our ‘Greener Herts’ partnership with three other Hertfordshire-based organisations: B3Living, Watford Community Housing and Dacorum Borough Council.
Through the Greener Herts Partnership we have worked together to improve the energy efficiency of our homes, follow more environmentally friendly construction techniques and adopt other more sustainable ways of working.
Following the Greener Herts Partnership’s successful bid to the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF), we secured over £5 million to make settle homes more energy efficient.
During the last financial year, 2024-25, we agreed with Government that we will complete works to 423 homes through the wave 2 funding provided. At the end of March 2025 we had started works in over 350 of these properties, 141 of which were started during 2024/25 and fully completed works in 320 (267 completions during 2024/25). We have completed 811 improvement measures across these properties during the past year. We expect to complete the works to all Settle homes through the wave 2 funding by summer 2025
Warmer Homes Wave 3
In March 2025, we were delighted to be offered over £10million for work to Settle homes through the Government’s Warmer Homes Wave 3. We expect to be able to complete works to over 1000 Settle homes. We are now confirming details of works to be completed with the aim of starting this during summer 2025.
Working with residents
Our Green Panel is all about working together for a greener, more sustainable future. We know that the best way to achieve our sustainability plans is to involve you – our residents, so we’ve created the Green Panel.
Interested in joining our panel to help drive this vital work? Visit our get involved page.
Energy Efficiency Programme – for residents
You may have been contacted by settle asking if we can survey the energy efficiency of your home. We plan to make homes more energy efficient and comfortable for our residents, which will help save on fuel bills reduce carbon emissions and move towards our target of Settle homes reaching at least Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) Band C by 2030.