RSUA joins with forum to brief Communities Committee on retrofit

This month (Thursday 2 October), RSUA Director Ciarán Fox represented the organisation on a panel organised by the Forum for Better Homes NI, which provided an oral briefing to the Committee for Communities at Stormont.

The Forum, which brings together a range of stakeholders from the construction industry, was established in June 2018 to examine the challenges facing the housing market in Northern Ireland and to provide guidance to decision-makers on priorities and objectives.

The evidence session focused primarily on the challenges and opportunities associated with retrofit in Northern Ireland and can be viewed in full by clicking this link, starting at 2:02:02.

Among the points raised to the Committee were:

• Northern Ireland is not yet prepared for large-scale home retrofitting, with the panel calling for a clear, evidence-based roadmap and greater investment in skills and accreditation.
• Major barriers to retrofit include lack of funding, limited public confidence and poor access to credible information, prompting a proposal by the panel for a one-stop shop to provide impartial advice to homeowners.
• The Forum emphasised the need to update building regulations, improve training and capacity and ensure consistent policy direction across departments.

If you have any questions or comments about this session, please contact Curtis Large, RSUA Policy and Public Affairs Officer, at curtis@rsua.org.uk