Environment

Brickwork decoration on property

Hemp, the building material revolution?

Hemp has been used for thousands of years for such things as its fibre for rope making, food and traditional medicines. It belongs to the ...
air source heat pump at family home

Why Heat Pumps Are Much More Than Hot Air: Unveiling the Pros and Cons

In the ever-evolving landscape of home heating and cooling, heat pumps have emerged as versatile contenders, promising energy efficiency and year-round climate control. But are ...
woodburner stove

Boiler upgrade scheme gets an uplift

The government's Heat and Buildings Strategy introduced funding for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS). The scheme provides financial assistance to householders in England and Wales ...
cold water tank

How to keep water safe in your home

Keeping the water in your home safe to use is essential for maintaining the overall health and well-being of its occupants. Contaminated water can cause ...
suspended wood flooring in the home

Air pollution, housing and ULEZ

Road users around the UK will be familiar with ULEZ and the growing range of other acronyms concerning clean air zones. But should we consider ...
sustainable urban drainage system

Sustainable drainage systems and the law

As a result of factors including urbanisation, climate change and increased house building, flooding is becoming a more regular occurrence in the UK. As a ...
Could London buses turn London into a 15-minute city?

What is a 15-minute city – and do we want it?

Do we want it? Yes, we do. Most of those surveyed by YouGov said they would like to live in a 15-minute city or neighbourhood ...
house keys to your new home

Homes built virtually free of plastic

A housing and care provider has built a new property development in Redditch but, what sets the development apart from others, is the use of ...
modern house building across UK

Developments on hold due to pollution from nutrients

Laws designed to protect wetlands have been blamed for delays in building up to 120,000 new homes. A 2018 court of justice ruling to protect ...
listed building Squerryes Court

Conservation of the past trumps going green

Conservation, and the preservation of historic buildings, is preventing owners of listed buildings from adding eco-friendly improvements to their homes to reduce their carbon footprint ...
MMC versus traditional residential building

ECO scheme expansion hits snag – but what is “ECO”?

The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme raises funds from a levy on energy bills to pay for energy efficiency improvements for home owners and tenants ...
wind farm providing power to UK homes

Hydrogen heating

A neighbourhood of 300 homes in the east of Scotland has been selected to test a new hydrogen power network in the next three years ...
Detail from antique chair

Climate change behind mammoth clothes moth attack

The fabric of some of the UK's most important historic buildings are under attack by the clothes moth and other pests, thanks to climate change ...
fire service high rise building

New rules for stoves and fuels

Nothing compares to the warm and cosy ambiance provided by a stove in the home. It should be noted that there are currently no plans ...
Bromley-by-Bow Gasholders, London

Energy bills – heat pumps that CAN replace gas boilers?

Gas shortages and a looming price increase on energy bills has made going green even more of a priority for home owners and businesses. Air ...
electric car charger in the home

Car chargers – the high price of going green

All new homes and buildings in England must have electric car chargers, the government says, as it aims to ban the sale of new petrol ...
Insulation in the roofspace of a house

Got a plan to reduce your home’s carbon footprint?

One of the biggest challenges in our quest to reduce the carbon footprint of our homes is home heating. A big challenge indeed, when the ...
Image of properties overlooking the water at Topsham, Exeter, Devon

Business properties unable to access Flood Re

Flood Re has helped around 350,000 home owners obtain buildings insurance, but the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) says that helping owners ...
Homes need flood defences to protect against properties flooding

Local planning authorities to refer environment-related decisions

Environment Secretary, George Eustice, has said that local planning authorities will soon be forced to refer decisions to the Housing Secretary in instances where the ...
Solar Installation on a house build property

Calls to demystify net zero homes

An open letter to government has called for climate change plans to be less complicated and confusing if England is to achieve net zero. The ...
thatched roof property listed property insurance

Chocolate box thatched roofs under threat

Historic England has warned that thatched roofs may no longer exist in 20 years time. Thatched buildings need regular maintenance using like-for-like materials. It is ...
home heating thermostat

New homes too hot to handle?

In a new report to government, the Climate Change Committee has said that 570,000 new-build homes constructed since its last assessment in 2017 will need ...
Energy efficiency in UK homes

Energy efficient homes

Turning the UK carbon neutral by 2050 comes at a cost, and with residential property currently one of the biggest producers of greenhouses gases, homeowners ...
home heating blue hydrogen green hydrogen or gas

Home heating – blue hydrogen, green hydrogen or heat pumps?

The sale of new gas boilers for home heating is due to be banned from new build properties in 2025, and natural gas boilers  eventually ...

Fancy a life on the edge? We look at coastal erosion

A stunning property with beautiful sea views can often command a matching stunning price tag, but coastal erosion and rising sea levels mean some properties ...
Plumbing at Dunster Castle, Somerset

UK trial of hydrogen heated homes to begin

A government programme is funding two new hydrogen heated homes in Low Thornley, Gateshead. The houses will be built by April 2021, and will be ...
council investment in buying property

Green Homes home insulation grant funding redirected to local authorities

After reaching just 10% of the 600,000 homes that the government had targeted for help, the £300 million Green Homes Grant has been withdrawn. The ...
image of building floor with rot

Think you know fungi?

Most homeowners would agree that finding fungi in the house is far from 'fun'. However, there are some uses of fungi that homeowners might find ...
Energy efficient heating system in the home

Green Homes Grant fiasco

The government's advisory Climate Change Committee says that £2 billion needs to be spent every year until 2030 to meet its climate change targets. To ...
fire service high rise building

Cold room in your home? We look at BTUs

Many of us have been swooning under the heat this summer as we've struggled to work from home. However, as the heatwave becomes a distant ...
geothermal power station

A surveyor’s guide to harnessing geothermal power

A number of government incentives have been introduced over the years to meet the country's ‘green’ tagets, including Feed-in-Tariffs in 2010 and Renewable Heat Grants ...
Insulation in the roofspace of a house

Green Homes Grant concerns over quality of work

The government's new Green Homes Grant is due to be launched in England in September 2020. Under the scheme the government will fund between £5,000 ...
Energy efficient heating system in the home

Home insulation grant for homeowners in England

A £2 billion home insulation grant scheme is due to be introduced in September to encourage homeowners in England to make energy saving improvements to ...
Building on flood plains has to stop

Government accused of hypocrisy over building in at-risk flood areas

Denbighshire County Council's planning officers recommended that an affordable housing development should be built, even though it would mean building in an at-risk flood area, ...
Energy efficiency in UK homes

Energy efficiency in UK homes

The energy efficiency of British homes must be urgently improved, according to experts. In 2018, the UK's homes produce nearly 66 million tonnes of CO2 ...

Household survey on attitudes towards carbon emissions

A household survey of over 2,000 UK homeowners has been published on behalf of the Home Builders Federation, in preparation for a summit to plot ...

Physical challenges facing disabled people in their homes

You may live in a disability friendly home but looking for a disability friendly hotel room that breaks with tradition may not be straightforward. To ...

Concern over house prices due to new McDonald’s in Oakham

The picturesque town of Oakham in Rutland has no permanent speed traps, is home to England's largest reservoir and boasts the remains of a Norman ...

Car-free city centres spread across the UK

A number of cities have made, or are planning to make, their centres free from traffic. In the UK Bath, Birmingham, Oxford and York have ...

Discover whether you live in a ‘woke’ city

The modern political slang term ‘woke’ has African American origins and refers to the perceived awareness of issues concerning social and racial justice. The property ...

Re-wilding could seriously damage property prices

If you've put the lawnmower away for the year and need an excuse not to get it out again next spring, you might like to ...

University students living sustainably on campus

At Staffordshire's Keele University, a group of students is embarking on a one year project which will teach them how to live sustainably. The mainly ...

RIBA Stirling Prize awarded to ‘modern masterpiece’ in Norwich

The Royal Institute of Architecture's biggest award has this year been awarded to a project by Norwich City Council. As well as the RIBA Stirling Prize ...

Putting people first at a car-free Portsmouth peninsula

Portsmouth City Council hopes to 'put people first' by changing the way people travel. It plans to create a community that is 'more visible', thus ...

Possible 20% house price reductions due to air pollution

The not-for-profit organisation, Central Office of Public Interest (COPI), raises national awareness on air pollution. It began its latest campaign, addresspollution.org, in May this year ...

What is passive housing?

Climate change and our impact on the environment are likely to have a long-term impact on the planet. We look at passive housing, a concept ...

Refurbished House looks at ‘real’ sustainable renovation

The Scottish Government set out ambitious plans in 2007 to build more low carbon homes although house builders have felt little pressure from home buyers ...

Meet the frugal family who live in an off-grid home

A family living completely off-grid in Cumbria claims that their only outgoing is council tax. Their home is just outside the small village of Gamblesby, ...

Your greener and more energy efficient home

No-one can have missed the recent media reports and stark messages about global warming. There is a  general consensus that we must sit up and ...

New regulations in new builds could mean an end to gas heating

New regulations have been announced following a report from the Committee on Climate Change (CCC)  that advises the government. The new standard bans the use of ...

‘A barren public realm dominated by parked cars’

The development of new housing without sufficient transport infrastructure in place has contributed to greater car dependency, leaving non-drivers of all ages isolated, less active ...

Call for compulsory water meters to help combat water shortages

Few of the increasing number of homes in the UK are without a washing machine, dishwasher, bath or shower, but did you know that the ...

The world’s first floating environmental-friendly farm launches in Rotterdam

An offshore dairy farm will be the first of its kind in the world, when it opens later this year in the port of Rotterdam ...

Grade II listed Orfordness Lighthouse at risk from the sea

An impressive Grade II Listed decommissioned lighthouse, built on Orford Ness on the Suffolk coastline, now stands on its own peninsula and is at risk ...

Network Rail loses legal battle against Japanese Knotweed

Following a Court of Appeal ruling, Network Rail has lost its appeal over damages that could enable land owners to claim damages if Japanese Knotweed ...

Hidden buildings and historic gardens revealed by summer heatwave

The summer of 2018 will be remembered for reaching the semi-final stages of the World Cup and for the record-breaking hot weather that we have ...

Thinking of moving your home? A dramatic move at Hemsby, Norfolk, follows in the footsteps of bigger house moves!

Residents of homes along the sandy cliffs of Hemby, on the Norfolk coast, are no strangers to coastal erosion. Indeed, their homes have been tumbling ...

Report that Japanese Knotweed ‘cannot be eradicated’ sparks horrified industry reaction worthy of Knotweed itself!

Japanese Knotweed (F.japonica) is a problem. It is hugely invasive, can prevent you from selling your home and, indeed, mortgage lenders are unlikely to lend ...

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland spending more on promoting energy efficient homes than England

Most people would agree that focusing on making our homes more energy efficient would in turn reduce demand and costs. However, an independent climate change organisation ...

Heat network consumers asked to express their views

There are now around 17,000 district and communal heating networks (HNs) in the UK, delivering heat from a central source to public sector buildings, offices ...

Good news for 83% of the UK’s population – the UK has not been concreted over!

The news that the percentage of the UK land area that is densely built upon is 0.1% has won the title of UK Statistic of ...

Extreme weather and lack of maintenance causing physical erosion – leading to environmental disaster in the future as landfill site washes into the sea

In a number of mainly riverside and coastal areas around Britain, the more extreme weather occurrences of the last few years have caused land erosion ...

Tuck your trousers in your socks and stand on a chair! Rat invasion on its way

Rats are reportedly on the increase this autumn, due to a combination of wetter weather and cooler temperatures. Rats are most likely to seek food ...

Utility companies paying £2,500 a day to dig up the road

Section 74A of the New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 and the Street Works (charges for occupation of the highway) (England) Regulations 2012 have ...

Coverack hit by flash flood after spending £300k on sea defences

Some areas across the UK received over two weeks of rain in less than an hour on 18th July, while an inch of rain fell ...