Saving carbon emissions, energy and money at home

Our Climate Emergency Resident Action Pack was launched to show residents the actions they can take to reduce carbon emissions, save money on their energy bills and how to respond to the impacts of climate change.

Top priorities

In our recently commissioned Net Zero Pathway Analysis, buildings in Richmond were identified as our biggest source of carbon emissions as a borough with the following three priorities identified:

• Improving energy efficiency
• Reducing gas heating systems
• Low carbon and energy efficient cooking, lighting and appliances

These priorities can also help residents and businesses with cost savings over time, improved indoor air quality and indoor comfort and wellbeing. 

Energy efficiency

You can search for your property’s Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating which provides recommendations based on the most recent certificate available.

EcoFurb also allows you to enter a property postcode and search for solutions based on three priority scenarios:

• To cut carbon emissions
• To lower energy bills
• To aim for zero carbon

Home upgrades

Depending on your own property, circumstances and priorities there are a few ways in which you can make upgrades to your home.

Standard upgrades

These are easy, low cost but effective measures to improve energy efficiency. This can include the installation of energy efficient lightbulbs, energy saving devices and draught-proofing your home.

Intermediate upgrades

These are moderate measures that include switching from a gas boiler to an electric boiler on a green tariff, improvements to window glazing or improvements in loft insulation. It’s estimated that 10% of our home heat is lost through windows, 15% through draughts and one third through our walls.

Enhanced upgrades

For some properties, larger scale retrofit will be required. For this the first step would be to arrange a retrofit assessment via a reputable company. Watch Trustmark’s Introduction to Retrofit to understand where to start.

MakeMyHouseGreen

To empower local homeowners to buy solar panels, we have partnered with MakeMyHouseGreen.

They offer a trusted scheme that will help you assess if solar is right for you, understand your options, avoid common pitfalls and find the ideal system for you and your home. 

We have negotiated an automatic £500 discount for all Richmond upon Thames residents. 

Actions

The Energy Saving Trust gives advice on improving your carbon footprint, including:

• Energy saving at home
• Heating your home - including heat pumps, electric heaters, boilers, biomass and solar water heating. Read their hear pump installation guide
• Reducing home heat loss – including cavity wall insulation, roof and loft insulation, insulating water tanks and pipes, and solid wall insulation
• Generating renewable energy – including solar and wind

Further advice on how to action changes can be found through:

• Trustmark’s Guide to Retrofitting Your Home
• Our pages on planning
• Historic England’s pages for older properties in our borough
• The Visit a heat pump website - discover one in action near you
• The Get a heat pump website - information, tools and guidance to help you learn about heat pumps, choose the right type, estimate costs, understand the installation process and more

Further steps

In addition to home retrofitting and other energy saving methods, we recommend:

• Exploring green or renewable energy suppliers approved by the Energy Saving Trust - Good Energy, Green Energy UK or Ecotricity
• Discovering grants available to homeowners via Which?
• Visiting our new Library of Things in Twickenham where you can borrow items for your own home improvements, entertainment and use at a low cost
• Visiting our waste and recycling and community recycling pages to discover ways you can reuse, repurpose and recycle items
• Exploring ways to save water, lower your water bills and reduce your water heating costs via the Thames Water Saving Calculator