Minister sees how Wheatley is driving green agenda

Mr Harvie visited Broomhill to meet staff and tenants of GHA – part of Wheatley Group – to hear about the range of initiatives introduced by Scotland’s leading housing, care and property-management group to cut carbon emissions.

The Group is investing £100m on sustainability initiatives over the next five years as part of its ‘Greener Homes, Greener Lives’ campaign, as Glasgow hosts COP26.

Mr Harvie visited the low-carbon district heating system in Broomhill, which delivers heating and hot water to more than 700 homes in the area, helping tenants pay less on their bills and cut emissions.

He also saw for himself how Wheatley tenants and staff are using an electric car-sharing club at Broomhill to help reduce their carbon footprint and save money.

Mr Harvie said: “I was pleased to visit Broomhill today to hear about the £100m Greener Homes, Greener Lives programme being undertaken by the Wheatley Group to reduce fuel poverty and make homes in Glasgow cleaner and greener.”

Pictured above are Minister for Zero Carbon Buildings Patrick Harvie MSP with Colin Reid, Wheatley’s  Carbon Reduction and Sustainability Manager, and tenants Claire Elliott and Sharmaine Rowling inside the energy centre at Broomhill.

Wheatley is investing £100m over the next five years on sustainability measures, including:

• £36m spent on new energy-efficient double/triple glazed windows;
• £10m on external wall insulation to help improve the thermal efficiency of homes and cut fuel bills; and
• £10m on ‘Connected Response’, an innovative solution to inefficient and expensive electric heating which reduces energy use by up to 30% and cut bills by up to £300 per year.

The Group will also invest £10m on new innovative technologies to improve energy efficiency.

Tom Barclay, Wheatley Group Director of Property and Development,said: “Wheatley is committed to creating ‘Greener Homes, Greener Lives’ across Scotland over the next five years.

“We were delighted to welcome the Minister to Broomhill to hear about our plans to reduce emissions and help tackle fuel poverty.

“The district heating system at Broomhill helps cut emissions and cuts bills for tenants and the ultra-low emission electric car club is another way we are driving the green agenda in homes and communities throughout Scotland.

“Many of our communities are already benefiting from our massive investment programme, including in insulation, improving the energy-efficiency of heating systems in multi-storeys and solar panels, which make our homes more environmentally friendly and reduce heating costs.”

Pictured above are Minister for Zero Carbon Buildings Patrick Harvie MSP with Wheatley tenant Sharmaine Rowling at the electric car charging point in Broomhill

The Broomhill district heating system, built in 2016, is powered by a central energy centre near 5 Broomhill Lane. The biomass heating system runs on wood pellets rather than fossil fuels and is an important way Wheatley is reducing fuel bills for tenants and helping the environment.

The electric car club, backed by Transport Scotland and Co Wheels, has been running at Broomhill – and three other GHA sites in the city – since October 2019. The average Co2 emissions saved from the use of the electric vehicles is two tonnes – more than the weight of two elephants.

Wheatley’s ambitious sustainability targets and a range of other initiatives will help its long-term aims of becoming carbon neutral and eliminating fuel poverty.

Wheatley, like all social landlords, is working to improve the energy performance of its homes by 2032, under the Scottish Government’s requirement for Energy Efficiency Standards in Social Housing (EESSH).

Wheatley is also committing to being carbon neutral in its corporate estate by 2026, and reduce carbon emissions from its homes by at least 4000 tonnes per year.

In June, Wheatley became the first housing group in Scotland to gain the prestigious Planet Mark accreditation.

The UK’s leading sustainability body hailed Wheatley as ‘a leader in the housing industry’ for its commitment to reducing carbon emissions.

Pictured at the top of the page are Minister for Zero Carbon Buildings Patrick Harvie MSP with Wheatley tenants and staff outside the district heating energy centre in Broomhill.