Around 200 North Staffordshire households are to benefit from a Staffordshire Housing Association scheme to install solar panels to heat homes.
The scheme will help to cut heating costs for tenants and support the Stoke based association’s work to cut its carbon footprint.
Householders can typically knock between £70 and £100 a year off their household bills by installing solar panels according to the Energy Saving Trust.
And SHA is keeping the money spent on solar panels in the local economy by working with Heatex, based at Festival Park, Stoke-on-Trent.
Work has now begun on the project with around 30 homes benefiting so far.
Fitting solar, otherwise known as photo voltaic, panels to 200 homes is the first stage of a wider programme of energy efficiency work being carried-out by Staffordshire Housing Association.
“The current programme is effectively a pilot project,” explained SHA’s Development Director Barry Pitts. “We have carried out an assessment of all our housing stock to identify ways it can be made more energy efficient, cheaper to run and reduce carbon footprint.”
The housing association owns and manages around 2,800 homes in North Staffordshire.
Future projects under consideration include:
Offering an affordable finance package through a credit union to allow householders to buy energy saving appliances
Assisting residents to find the most affordable energy tariffs through SHA’s Money Adviser Service
Up-grading insulation and sourcing other energy saving/low carbon solutions, for SHA’s housing stock.
The 200 homes in the pilot project are spread across the North Staffordshire conurbation and include a mix of old and modern, terrace and semi detached properties.
ENDS
For further information contact Sandra Barber on 01782 744533.
Notes to Editors:
Staffordshire Housing Group is a housing association committed to building a better future for local communities. Established in 1984, SHA provide a huge range of tenant services including maintenance, tenancy support, estate management and gardening, as well as essential guidance on income management, money advice and benefits assessments. They are committed to improving live in Staffordshire through regeneration, supported housing, older people’s villages, key worker homes and a rolling programme of home improvements. Their subsidiary company, Blue Mountain Housing Association, also work closely with refugee and local BME communities to provide essential support with healthcare, education, training and employment as well as access to quality housing.