Housing associations currently own and manage around 2.7 million homes across England. They have until 2030 to achieve an EPC C and become carbon neutral by 2050. Fuel poverty is a growing problem. The ability of housing associations to retrofit at scale and pace will be put to the test in the coming years.

Kensa Utilities’ Heat the Streets funded array offer is providing pioneering housing associations the means with which to achieve these goals. One of these is Cornish-based Coastline Housing. Coastline has worked with Kensa to replace inefficient fossil fuel heating systems with Kensa’s ground source heat pumps (GSHP’s) across various social housing properties in Cornwall.

The Heat the Streets project, which is part funded by the European Regional Development Fund, is aimed at helping the transition to renewable heating systems by offering low-carbon solutions that can help lower energy bills by up to 50% and reduce carbon emissions by up to 70%. By replacing conventional heating systems with ground source heat pumps, the project aims to tackle three problems:

1. fuel poverty

2. thermal comfort and

3. the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere.

Kensa's funded array offer allows households to benefit from this sustainable heating solution, without having to bear the full upfront cost of installation. Under this model, the ground array (the underground pipes through which the GSHPs absorb heat) is owned by Kensa Utilities, while the heat pump unit is owned by the homeowner, mirroring the arrangements residents are familiar with from the gas network today. This arrangement means the installation costs are comparable if not lower than air-source heat pumps, as households and/or social housing landlords pay for just the heat pump in the home upfront.

The funded array model makes it more accessible to households, while the scalability of the model makes it suitable for both small and large-scale projects. As the need for sustainable heating solutions grows, ground source heat pumps are likely to become increasingly popular, paving the way for a greener and more sustainable future.

The infrastructure requires minimal maintenance and has an expected lifespan of 100 years. The ground source heat pumps have an expected lifetime greater than 20 years, also allowing long-term cost savings for Coastline and its customers.

Gareth Jones, contracts manager at Coastline Housing, said: ‘A number of Coastline households will benefit from this innovative project, and it helps us as a social landlord to progress towards less reliance on fossil fuels in future in line with the ambitions in our environmental strategy. ‘It’s a real win-win for Coastline and for our customers. As well as the obvious environmental benefits, it will mean lower running costs for customers heating their homes. As a local housing charity, both of these things are very important to us, and we hope to be able to roll this technology out to other areas in future.’

Through Heat the Streets, Kensa and Coastline are confident that residents are being provided with optimum comfort and lower running costs. Kensa estimates that replacing the night storage heaters with ground source heat pumps will not only reduce running costs by over £500 per year, but also cut carbon emissions by 70%.

Wouter Thijssen, managing director of Kensa Utilities, adds: ‘A Ground Source Heat Pump on a Shared Ground Loop provides the lowest carbon footprint, lowest running costs, and lowest whole-life costs. As a result of these systems, housing providers can reduce their environmental impact, future-proof their assets, and protect their tenants from fuel poverty. ‘We are proud of our relationship with Coastline and believe that the model we are demonstrating through Heat the Streets is a scalable blueprint for the deployment of heat pumps throughout the UK.’

Kensa will be installing this technology in 31 Coastline owned homes before the end of June 2023. Kensa's funded array ground source heat pumps offer a 21st-century alternative to the gas network, providing households with a reliable, cost-effective, and sustainable heating solution.

Caroline Bolitho, a resident of Stithians, was one of the first Coastline tenants to be connected. She said: ‘As a grandma I feel that I’m doing my bit for future generations and reducing my carbon footprint by having a ground source heat pump system which is important. I have been using oil heating before this and I feel really privileged and excited to have the system up and running.’

Decarbonise your portfolio.

Book a one-to-one CPR with Kensa to understand how social housing providers can tackle fuel poverty and carbon emissions with ground source heat pumps, providing the lowest running and lifecycle costs, without the upfront expenses. Contact Kensa at info@kensautilities.com.

About the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)

The project is receiving up to £3.4m of funding from the England European Regional Development Fund as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (and in London the intermediate body Greater London Authority) is the Managing Authority for European Regional Development Fund. Established by the European Union, the European Regional Development Fund helps local areas stimulate their economic development by investing in projects which will support innovation, businesses, create jobs and local community regenerations. For more information visit: https://www.gov.uk/european-growth-funding.