North Wales Housing celebrates environmental award
North Wales Housing has been recognised with a Silver award for the sustainability of their homes in a prestigious environmental awards scheme. The SHIFT (Sustainable Homes Index for Tomorrow) benchmarking scheme, endorsed by the government, analyses the environmental performance of housing associations.
North Wales Housing has been recognised with a Silver award for the sustainability of their homes in a prestigious environmental awards scheme. The SHIFT (Sustainable Homes Index for Tomorrow) benchmarking scheme, endorsed by the government, analyses the environmental performance of housing assocations.
The assessment process covered all aspects of North Wales Housing’s operation including offices, purchasing, new build, existing properties and more. Weighted questions measure aspects such as energy efficiency, water use, waste and adaptation to climate change.
This is the first year that North Wales Housing has been assessed and is an important step on the journey to become a genuinely sustainable organisation. Richard Snaith, Sustainability Coordinator for North Wales Housing accepted the award at the Homes Conference in Olympia London 26th Nov. Richard said:
“To have achieved Silver in our first year is a major achievement for North Wales Housing. It reflects our commitment to sustainability and helps benchmark us against other housing associations. It also gives us a plan to work with, providing us with a clear set of actions going forward”
Paul Diggory, Chief Executive of North Wales Housing added:
“It’s great to be recognised in this way – the quality of the homes we provide and their environmental impacts are in many ways two sides of the same coin. With some forecasting that bills could double in the next decade, investing in improving the energy efficiency of homes is the best way to protect residents. Of course we can always do more, but it’s great to be part of a network of leading housing associations pushing up standards.”
Andrew Eagles, Managing Director of Sustainable Homes, which administers the scheme, said:
“These awards are all about recognising progress and achievement in improving the quality of residents’ homes. North Wales Housing should be proud of the strides they are taking to improve – especially at the moment when cash from the government is so limited. It’s important to remember that when we talk about ‘environmental performance’, it’s not some abstract ‘nice-to-have’ badge. For residents, investing in this stuff means lower bills – as well as a higher quality of life. SHIFT members are at the forefront of sustainability. They have committed to independent assessment and are working to reduce their impacts”
