Andy Sutton is co-founder and chief innovation officer at Sero
2026: Time to get on the proper boat
I consider 2026 is shaping as much as be a pivotal yr for the UK’s journey to Web Zero. Proper now, the power and building sectors are shifting on totally different trajectories, and except we convey them collectively, we danger shedding influence.
The power sector is already out at sea, accelerating towards electrification and renewables. Tasks like EQUINOX present warmth pumps can ship dependable flexibility. Environmental Levy modifications assist electrification, and reforms like “P415” unlock the potential that resident-level applied sciences similar to batteries have promised. Even with the ECO scheme ending, retail power firms will play a major position in bettering the UK’s 30 million properties.
In the meantime, the retrofit and building sector stays nearer to shore, going through long-standing challenges round time, value, and high quality. Whereas there are lots of constructive exceptions, the market ranges from main contractors charging vital charges, to an unregulated panorama with little high quality management. Stakeholders more and more body retrofit as an answer for biodiversity, social isolation, well being, embodied carbon, and placemaking, legitimate objectives, however laborious to quantify and reliant on long-term knowledge.
The danger? In 2026, the power boat sails on whereas building lingers on the water’s edge. If we board solely the power vessel, we’ll electrify properties at scale and decarbonise because the grid shifts, however with out addressing cloth, air flow and high quality, households could face increased payments and poor consolation. If we keep rooted on the development shore, we’ll fail to scale in any respect.
Many years of makes an attempt show that remaining on the shore can’t ship scale.
What must come aboard?
To succeed, we should convey the necessities from retrofit onto the energy-led journey, sufficient to attain significant outcomes with out overloading the boat. These necessities are:
- High quality requirements that end in secure, dependable installations that carry out as supposed.
- An affordability focus – retrofit should stay accessible to households.
- Enhance well being outcomes with properties that stop damp, enhance air flow, and assist wellbeing.
- Safe the demand discount fundamentals, insulation and airtightness to enhance electrification.
These are non-negotiables. We could not constantly ship each ambition, similar to embodied carbon or community-owned supply, however defining retrofit as creating properties which are decarbonised, inexpensive, and wholesome is much better than being left behind.
2026: Cease debating, begin delivering!
That is the yr to maneuver past definitions and begin delivering at scale. With revolutionary know-how, data-driven choices, and collaboration throughout sectors, we are able to create properties that work for folks and the planet.
