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Consumer friendly green-proofing

Monday, December 21, 2009

Source: Catherine Deshayes

Housing and Planning Minister, John Healey has launched proposals for a more consumer-friendly green rating for homes that will help green-proof properties and reduce future utility bills by up to nearly £1500 a year in the most energy efficient homes...

The Code for Sustainable Homes was introduced in April 2007 as a standard to improve the overall sustainability of new homes. The Code scores against a star rating system, using one to six stars depending on how the property performs against categories such as energy use, waste, materials and water.

Mr Healey has pledged to improve the Code so that it's easier for consumers, whether they are developers or individuals simply wanting to grade and track the sustainability of their properties.

The Code is rated from one to six, one being the entry level - above the level of the standard, mandatory Building Regulations - and six as highest, reflecting exemplar sustainable development. In the first two years, over 300,000 have been registered to build to Code standards, and nearly 2,000 homes have completed Code certificates.

The improved star rating system will also take into account the tougher new rules for energy efficiency in the building regulations, coming into force from 2010 and the longer term proposals for energy efficiency standards in zero carbon homes. The Code will reflect these mandatory requirements giving people the opportunity to build to tomorrow's standards today and save more on bills.

Mr Healey said: "Our homes account for a quarter of UK carbon emissions, so it's clear they are a vital part of our efforts to tackle climate change.

"The talks in Copenhagen have underlined the need for us to act now, so we need to ensure that people who want to greenproof their homes get a helping hand, not red tape.

"The Code has proved its worth but now is the time to make it a more user-friendly standard for consumers. In the future, this will help drive uptake so people will save more money on bills and reduce the carbon footprint of new homes."