Retrofit at a Crossroads: UKCW’s Retrofit Day Reveals a Nation Rich in Ideas but Poor in Trust
A full-day programme at UK Construction Week laid bare the state of the nation in retrofit. From district heat networks to community-driven Victorian terrace upgrades, the speakers’ stories point to a paradox: Britain has the tools and the policies, but not yet the trust or confidence to scale them.
“We’ve got 15,000 heat networks in the UK… yet only around 3% of our heat demand is supplied this way. In Copenhagen it’s 98%.” Andy Perry, Energy Systems Catapult
The day began with that stark comparison. It framed a recurring theme that ran through every panel: the gap between potential and delivery.
While the exhibition floor of UKCW in Birmingham was crowded with products and solutions, the Retrofit Day sessions explored something deeper: why so many proven technologies fail to take root in British streets.
From Policy to Pavement
Heat networks exemplify the problem. Andy Cleary listed both the drivers and the barriers:
“We’ve got anchor loads, we’ve got projects in Bristol, Bolton, Sheffield and Trafford worth billions… but the biggest barrier is still skills.”
To paraphrase his ideas - investors want low risk and high returns heat networks aren’t quite there yet… and the public doesn’t really understand them.
Later, a panellist reflected wryly on the UK’s sluggish pace off mic:
“Listening to colleagues from DESNZ say we need to wrap things up in six weeks… under my breath I thought: six years.”
The policy scaffolding is being built, with mandatory connections and price-cap protections coming in, but speakers stressed that confidence at street level is still fragile.
Community Retrofit Works
The contrast was vivid when the floor was given to the Retrofit Connect / Balsall Heath story and the Portland Inn Project.
“Our aim is to insulate and improve all the homes in the area — with no one left behind.” Balsall Heath Retrofit volunteer
Because good insulation and affordable heating makes homes warmer and drier, quickly improving everyone’s health.”
Retrofit and Community Projects
“This is not just a nice community story. We want to talk about the nuts and bolts of what it takes to do this work on the front line.” Session host Sara Edmond Nationals Retrofit Hub
Contractor Stuart Chapman described his own journey:
“I was an old-school builder… sceptical at first.
But once I went on the courses and saw the impact, I realised we could deliver better buildings with sustainable materials.”
The Portland Inn case showed that when residents, builders and architects learn together, they adopt lower-carbon materials, hemp insulation, wood-wool boards, acoustic floors and crucially, they stay engaged.
The Regulatory Fog
At another session, Project RetroNet Zero and the National Energy Foundation spelt out why innovators still struggle to scale.
“The regulatory landscape is complex and often unclear… if you have a new product category it’s not obvious which test house to go to.” - Rachael Owens NRH
“We’re not here to cut red tape - regulation protects health and safety - but we need it to be clear and proportionate.”
Christine Murphy from NEF detailed the heat-pump experience:
“Replacing a gas boiler with a heat pump cuts carbon by about 80%… yet installations in 2024 will be under 100,000 against a target of 600,000 a year by 2028.”
“Large variations in heat-loss surveys undermine confidence in the technology… oversizing adds cost and reduces efficiency.”
The take-home message: innovation in retrofit is often slowed not by physics but by paperwork, inconsistent rules and uneven enforcement.
The Consumer Lens
In the energy-behaviour sessions, speakers agreed that people rarely retrofit for the planet.
“Environmental factors are a nice bonus, but they don’t motivate most people.
Social norming does. Once someone’s neighbour has a heat pump and likes it, they talk about it - like vegans - and that’s powerful.” Justin McMullan, Citizens Advice
An the decision to change is all about timing,
“You have to reach people at the trigger point - when the boiler breaks, or during a renovation - not on a random Tuesday afternoon.” Justin McMullan, Citizens Advice
With messaging being a critical factor -
“We found the biggest motivators for heat-pump adoption were financial savings and comfort, so our campaign used warm-and-fuzzy characters, not pictures of kit.” Christina Malcolm, DESNZ
Citizens Advice’s research echoed this:
“Around 40% of consumers still aren’t aware of heat pumps… awareness is not the same as understanding.” Justin McMullan
Skills and Trust
Across all panels the skills gap came up repeatedly — not just the shortage of installers but the need for ongoing, trusted hand-holding for householders.
From the audience during the community seminar;
“You’d be surprised how often we went back just to reset the thermostat. People need local, long-term support.”
“You can’t promise lower bills to people in fuel poverty if the system isn’t well-installed and maintained. That erodes trust.”
The State of the Nation in Retrofit
The day’s discussions suggest a paradox:
- Britain is not short of technology.*
Heat networks, heat pumps, fabric upgrades, smarter controls and even low-carbon building materials are all proven. - Nor is it short of pilots and local heroes.*
From Balsall Heath to the Portland Inn Project, communities can retrofit faster and better when they co-design and co-own the process.
What Britain lacks is trust, trust that the rules are fair and stable, that installers are competent, that investments will pay off, and that neighbours are making the same journey.
“You can’t fix this in six weeks… sometimes not even in six months.
It’s a long engagement — but without that, none of this will stick.”
From Pilots to the Mainstream
The single insight that emerged most clearly from UKCW’s Retrofit Day is that retrofit at scale will be a civic project as much as a technical one.
It will succeed only if government, regulators, local authorities, community leaders, builders and innovators converge on one shared goal: making the low-carbon choice the trusted, obvious and easy choice.
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