Climate change: How can we make our homes and communities greener?

A couple who have spent about £35,000 making their home greener say they have seen a dramatic reduction in their bills and carbon footprint.

Dominic McCann and his wife Kerstin, have installed solar panels on their roof, external wall insulation, an air source heat pump, and triple glazed the windows.

They hope their eco-refurb, or retrofitting, will not only make their home greener, but help contribute to reducing climate change across the UK.

Draughty homes contribute to 14% of the UK's greenhouse gas emissions so making our homes greener and more energy efficient is a central part of the Government's strategy for climate change.

However retrofitting can be expensive, and for many people it's simply not something they can afford to do.

The McCanns say they were able to carry out so much work due to the government's green home grant - something it no longer offers.

The government scrapped its programme to install insulation and low-carbon heating after only six months, during which a fraction of the homes targeted were insulated, and there were widespread complaints of poor service.

• What is retrofitting?

Retrofitting is retrospectively fitting energy improvements to your home - so that could be insulation, new windows and doors, solar panels, and heat pumps.

Since scrapping the grant, the government has announced a new scheme, offering £5,000 towards new environmentally-friendly heat pumps.

But those in the industry say that doesn't go far enough.

Jonathan Atkinson is from the Carbon co-op, a not-for-profit co-operative that aims to assist people in finding green solutions to reduce carbon emissions from their homes by helping them retrofit, giving practical help and advice.

They are also part of Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham's Climate change partnership.

The Carbon Co-op say that there is a growing awareness of the need to retrofit and that increased time at home during the pandemic focussed people’s minds on the need to change.

But they say that more funding is needed from government to help people afford it.

Around 270,000 homes will need to be upgraded every year just in the North between now and 2035 in order to meet government targets.

So far any attempt to scale-up retrofitting has failed because of a lack of qualified trades people and because of the costs involved.

But with more than a million homes in Greater Manchester alone likely to require work, thousands more tradespeople will need to get into the retrofitting game if Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham is to reach his target of the region being carbon neutral by 2038.

Of course, retrofitting is just not affordable for many households who are already struggling with rising energy bills and the cost of living.

That is why a different project has just got underway in Oldham, called the Oldham Energy Futures Project.

The aim is to help local people uncover the potential to improve the power, heat and transport systems that underlie their homes, public spaces and local area and imagine how these changes could benefit their community.

They're working with two neighbourhoods in Oldham, Sholver and Westwood, aiming to raise awareness, generate green projects and bring about change, organising regular workshops to generate new thinking to make their areas greener.

Counsellor Ruji Surjan is one of those who has got involved with the project.

She said: "When we looked at the EPC ratings for a lot of the buildings within our area and a lot of the energy is getting lost within the homes.

"A lot of the residents are on benefits, so in terms of the heating, and the electric, a lot of the cost goes towards that , how much can you really invest without spending too much when it isn't even your property."

"Through these workshops we've had lots of great ideas, like having a wind turbine on the community centre, installing solar panels, having the cycle lanes and e-scooter lanes so young people can cycle safely, and I think if we have the funding then the residents will buy into it."

• What can you do to make your home greener without spending huge amounts of money?

1. Find your draughts and gaps around the house and seal them up.

This is the easiest and most effective way to make your home more energy efficient.

Draught-proofing around windows and doors could save you around £25 a year, and draught-proofing an unused chimney could save around £18 a year, according to the Energy Saving Trust.

2. Find an alternative to your gas boiler - such as a heat pump.

New homes will be banned from installing new gas and oil boilers by 2025 and the government wants to see no new boilers sold after 2035.

There are three main contenders to replace them - heat pumps, hydrogen and district heating.

The Government has just announced grants of £5,000 to help with purchasing and installing heat pumps.

3. Replace or adapt windows and doors

Fitting double or triple glazed windows can make your home more energy efficent and help reduce your carbon footprint.

4. Insulate walls, roofs and floors

In an uninsulated home, about a third of heat is lost through the walls, a quarter goes through the roof, about 15% through the floor and the rest out of windows and as a result of draughts.

5. Fit LED bulbs and buy energy-efficient appliances

If you replace all the bulbs in your home with LED lights, you could reduce your carbon dioxide emissions by up to 40kg a year - the equivalent emissions to driving your car around 140 miles, the Energy Saving Trust says.