The IHBC North West (NW) Branch’s recent conference on ‘Adapting to Climate Change, key conclusions & challenges’, held in Chester Cathedral on 27 April, voiced the need to find common ground between heritage regulation and change under climate change, concluding that ‘It’s not IF but HOW!’.
…revise the EPC system….
Align the planning system to sensitive climate change mitigation….
…Invest in bridging the skills gap….
…abolishing or reducing VAT on thermal improvements to traditional buildings…..
Chairman of Donald Insall Associates Tony Barton writes:
At its recent conference in Chester Cathedral, the IHBC North-West challenged Historic England to find common ground between Conservation Architects looking to place historic buildings at the centre of the climate challenge and Conservation Officers uncertain about the impact of change on Listed buildings.
… new Historic England Advice Note: ‘Climate Change’ due later this year…
Chairman of Donald Insall Associates, Tony Barton hosted the conference and opened with two messages he received on the same day; a Grade I Listed building in Yorkshire had received permission to replace its windows with double glazed units, yet pre-app advice for a Grade II barn conversion was that replacement glass should be single glazed. ‘Where are we?’, Barton asked Historic England’s Strategic Head of Climate Change, Clare Hedley, who responded that policy advice is forthcoming, in the form of a new Historic England Advice Note: ‘Climate Change’ due later this year.
The Dean of Chester, Dr Tim Stratford, a scientist in a previous life, gave the conference sobering facts on the economic realities of heating and lighting the Cathedral, electricity and gas consumption had reduced by 15% and 40% respectively but energy costs have nearly doubled. Staff have been provided with heated jackets, walking visitors were warm but, as conference discovered, sitting for any length of time was uncomfortable in a largely unheated Cathedral.
The Cathedral plans to use two historic spaces for conferences and events, vital to its income but this would mean secondary glazing to the stained-glass windows. Were the heritage authorities ready to even consider this yet, the Dean asked, when the Cathedral is still in discussions about whether it can have a glazed draughtproofing screen to one of its entrance doors?
Hedley responded that Historic England was promoting England’s historic buildings, as part of the solution to the emergency and that what Architects and Conservationists alike were good at was managing change. She accepted that the planning system, as it stands, can make this difficult but that advice on mitigation and adaptation to help tackle the climate emergency was imminent. She stated that Historic England believed that every building could be made more energy efficient but acknowledged that this could be uncomfortable for some Conservationists. Hedley likened the need for change to the previous generation’s, largely successful, drive for equality of access into historic buildings.
Jane Entwistle, recent past president of the Institute of Structural Engineers, gave a perspective from other climates where resilience against increased wind and rain are the challenge. The UK’s buildings, including Chester Cathedral, were also being adapted to cope with heavier summer downpours – a tangible result of climate change.
News from the ‘front line’ came from Sophie Norton of the Carbon Coop who explained an inspiring community-based project is Levenshulme, Manchester, where traditionally built houses are taking a ‘fabric first – whole house approach’ to insulate, draughtproof and secondary double-glaze family homes and is showing what can be done. Norton explained that in addition to the lack of any financial assistance, the real challenge is training operatives and installers within the PAS2035 model but that the Coop was delivering its key target of a minimum EPC ‘C’ rating for traditionally built buildings.
The danger of historic buildings being stranded by their inability to gain viable EPC ratings for the rental market was one of the drivers behind the current Grosvenor : Insall research project in rural Cheshire. Joby Howard, Grosvenor’s Director of Buildings Services, explained the group’s published commitment to meeting the climate challenge and that Grosvenor had collaborated with Donald Insall Associates on a rural property, which was currently under construction, following detailed research and analysis. Howard expressed that this was a pilot project to inform how their rural estate could both meet the climate challenge and maintain economic viability. The design options had been carefully assessed against climate impact, cost, buildability, and attraction to the rental market. Insall’s analysis had been aided by Diane Hubbard of Green Footprint who explained the iniquities of the current EPC system but that the project was showing a 65% improvement in carbon emissions, which was increased to 85% if embedded carbon were to be added for the lifespan of the house. She summarised that:
- EPC’s assessments were not fit for purpose.
- In situ tests prove that historic buildings perform better than expected from U-value calculations.
- Training and improving installer skills were key factors for success.
- The research project shows that the commercial aspects can be met and that tenants had already signed up for the house and will contribute to the monitoring of the project and aid further research.
Grosvenor and Insall have also collaborated on policy issues and Insall’s Cordula Zeidler, Practice Director and Historic Building Consultant gave advice on how Policy and Regulation interact and conflict. She asked the key question – How is policy guidance to be met in practice to meet the UK’s climate targets? Zeidler challenged conference with the question ‘Are low carbon mitigation measures defined as ‘harm’ in the NPPF?’
There is a change of mindset at this time, she pointed out that Chester Cathedral had installed PV panels and that Kings College Chapel, Cambridge also now had consent, despite opposition from the Conservation authorities. Heritage Partnership Agreements and Local Listed Building Consent Orders were good tools to enable consents for the necessary improvement to historic buildings. The skills of Architects working with Conservation Officers and Historic England, within an agreed statutory framework, means that Listed buildings could more easily meet the challenges of the climate emergency. This is now a standard procedure, e.g. in Kensington and Chelsea and Zeidler asked that professionals all listen to the strong public feeling for thermal improvements and carbon mitigation to be made easier to achieve.
Max Fordham’s Gwilym Still gave a technical briefing on what current technologies can offer in changing older buildings, including mitigation of overheating in summer. He stressed though the need for careful research and modelling allied to the fundamental importance of basic building maintenance. Great strides have been made in air handling in recent years and he demonstrated how space heating can run at lower temperatures and explained the factors to be considered when specifying Heat Pump technology. As well as paying for high quality design, clients must also be thoroughly trained on how to properly control their systems he stressed.
The panel summed up the Conference’s key points for Government:
- Totally revise the EPC system.
- Align the planning system to sensitive climate change mitigation through the NPPF.
- Invest in bridging the skills gap.
- Give financial incentive by abolishing or reducing VAT on thermal improvements to traditional buildings.
Tony Barton closed by echoing Historic England’s key point – ‘It’s not IF but HOW!’
See more conference background
