Nov
30

Code for Sustainable Homes Gets an overhaul - 12:00 AM

Posted by: Mads Jensen
Tagged: Rating Systems, UK

The UK Government has recently announced changes to the Code for Sustainable Homes (CfSH), the national standard for the design and construction of new homes in England. Inspired by green building rating systems like LEED and BREEAM, the CfSH is a way to assess how well architects, developer and builders incorporate green building approaches that maximize the health of the occupants and the local environment by minimizing the use of energy, water, materials, while reducing the production of waste, pollution, and water runoff. With substantial revisions to the energy section and more credits for better materials choices (for energy efficiency purposes), the new standards will measure kWh/m2/year, much like PassivHaus standards. Here’s a quick summary of some the changes made to the Code for Sustainable Homes to drive a reduction in carbon emissions:

  • Aligning the Code with Part L 2010. Code level 4 continues to be a 44 per cent improvement above Part L 2006 (25 per cent above Part L 2010).
  • Adopting the Fabric Energy Efficiency Standard which replaces Heat Loss Parameter in ENE2.
  • Allowing fractions of credits in some categories
  • A new Energy Display category that awards credits for installing ‘smart meters’ displaying electricity and/or primary heating fuel consumption data
Though these new standards won’t apply to existing housing stocks (a sector of the market that is of significant importance when it comes to carbon emissions), they will be beneficial for new homes. Some in the industry are complaining that standards like these make green homes prohibitively expensive and that reporting regulations will turn certain trades away. But with the 2016 zero carbon zero objectives approaching fast, these updates are welcome and necessary.

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