“In a profit-driven building industry, the contractor’s interests are not always the interest of the householder – the industry is full of cowboys, and that’s why we set up the Future Fit Homes project.” – Giovanna Speciale, CEO, Selce.

Over the past five years Selce has been supporting households to access funding to help with home energy upgrades ranging from heating systems, insulation to solar panels. These programmes have never been easy to navigate and at times fraught, though they are designed to help the most vulnerable households in our society.  

We were pleased to see the announcement last Friday, that the government was beginning to take action around “cases of poor-quality solid wall insulation installed under inherited ECO4 and GBIS grant schemes.”  Resulting in Trustmark, the regulator for contractors delivering government grants, removing the licences of 39 contractors operating across the UK for poorly installed external and internal wall insulation.  

We have witnessed first-hand the negative impact that some of the installers listed have had on people’s homes and well-being.  And we are heartened to see the increased accountability around government schemes when it comes to work on people’s homes. No one – whether paying, part or wholly subsidised – should experience sub-standard work on their home. 

“In a profit-driven building industry, the contractor’s interests are not always the interest of the householder – the industry is full of cowboys, and that’s why we set up the Future Fit Homes project,” says Selce CEO Giovanna Speciale.  

Through a programme of educational events and one-to-one advice, our priority is to help residents of South-East London navigate the landscape of grants and privately funded retrofit with confidence. “That’s what a Whole House Plan does – so you don’t get mis-sold stuff. And to tell you what measures will best reduce your costs, reduce carbon and what order you need to do those measures in,” Giovanna adds. 

If you have experienced substandard work through a government scheme, you can lodge a complaint and have the work quality checked by professionals. The installers have been instructed to foot the bill, and no household should have payments requested of them as part of this process. The process is outlined here on the Government website.   

To find out more sign up to our newsletter or to sign up for independent grant assessments or for a whole house plan get in touch with our Future Fit Homes Team.  

We are seeking to identify local contractors that share in Selce’s values of a cleaner, fairer SE London. If you have worked with a contractor that you have had positive experiences with, please do get in touch with flavia@selce.org.uk to let us know about your experiences.