吃瓜tv

Contact

Iain Cairns, iain.cairns@strath.ac.uk

Overview

The knowledge exchange project advances the transition of Scotland’s building stock towards net zero and healthier homes by addressing the slow pace of tenement retrofit. It delivers openly accessible toolkits for retrofit and governance improvement, targeting property factors and owners and produces a policy briefing to inform policy development.

Figure 1 summarises the three phases of the project and the related outputs, audience and impact.

Figure 1 - Overview of the three impact projects

Funder

All three phases were funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). The first phase was supported through the Impact Acceleration Account (IAA), while phases 2 and 3 were funded by the Creating Opportunities through Local Innovation Fellowships (COLIF) programme.

Partners

The main project partner, , is a Scottish charity which provides impartial information to flat owners and related professionals, such as property managers, on issues related to tenement management, maintenance and retrofit.

Other contributors (e.g. contributing to early drafts of the toolkits) to the project include:

• Chris Carus, Loco Home Retrofit
• Kevin Sturgeon, Solicitor
• Mick Patrick, member of the Home Energy and Retrofit circle of BANZAI
• (Bruntsfield Area Net Zero Action Initiative).
• Neil Watt, Hacking and Paterson Management Services
• Rowan McCall Smith, Redpath Bruce Property Management Ltd

Activities

• Planning and delivery of workshops.

A stakeholder workshop brought together around 30 participants, including property managers, local government officers and retrofit specialists. The event introduced property factors to tenement owner groups and retrofit experts, fostering connections and improving access to trusted advice.

• Expert interviews:

Interviews were conducted with retrofit experts in Spain and Germany to inform the Policy Briefing on international best practice in owners’ associations.

• Co-creation of outputs:

Each output was co-produced with stakeholder input through workshops, consultations and iterative review of drafts.

• Outreach and engagement:

Project representatives engaged with local and national media, delivered presentations at public events and produced press releases.

The project in the media

There was dissemination and media coverage across multiple platforms, including:

• Launch of the factor’s toolkit:
  • 吃瓜tv News: Toolkit to support retrofit of historic tenements launched
  • The Herald:
  • Greater Govanhill Magazine:
  • Scottish Construction Now:
  • Redpath Bruce (property manager) newsletter:
  • Scottish Housing News: .
  • Buildoffsite News:
  • Glasgow City Innovation District: .
• Projects discussed in local media:
  • Sunny Govan Community Radio Show:
  • Greater Govanhill Magazine interview:
  • Scottish Housing News: Podcast: .

Outputs / publications

Phase 1

1. . Practical guidance for property factors supporting tenement retrofit.
2. for flat owners hosted on Under One Roof website. This explains what owners can expect from factors regarding retrofit.
3. Teaching materials. Developed for Under One Roof to launch training courses for property factors.

Phase 2 (in preparation)

1. Policy Briefing. Drawing on international best practice, the paper advocates for mandatory owners’ associations in Scotland with any legal changes based on international best practice in owners’ association governance.
2. Owners’ Association Retrofit Toolkit. Providing resources to support collective retrofit action.

Phase 3 (in preparation)

1. Democratic Skills Toolkit. A guide helping flat owners develop the soft skills (knowledge, reasoning, communication and interpersonal) essential for good tenement governance.
2. Teaching materials. PowerPoint slides and class activities supporting owners better govern their tenements.

Outcomes & Impacts

Immediate outcomes include:

• Strengthening Under One Roof’s role as the primary trusted messenger for tenement communities on the collective processes for the energy retrofit of tenements: by providing materials for use and dissemination by the charity online and in training workshops.
• Supporting Under One Roof’s strategic development by helping the organisation diversify away from grant dependency. The toolkit has been used to train around 40 professional property factors.
• Building networks and knowledge-sharing between property factors, retrofit specialists and owners’ associations. The project introduced retrofit specialists to factors and owners’ association representatives through workshop and the toolkit co-creation process.

Broader impacts include:

• Stimulating local economies and green jobs; increased retrofit activity in tenements supports employment in the retrofit and broader construction sectors.
  • , the construction organisation, reports that the factors’ toolkit “[creates] a significant opportunity for Buildoffsite members to provide innovative offsite construction solutions”.
• Supporting factors deliver retrofit:
  • The property factor reports that: “By making use of this guidance, factors can enhance their role, help property owners navigate retrofit challenges and contribute to Scotland’s energy efficiency goals”.
  • Partner organisation says: “Factors across Scotland can use [the property factor’s tenement retrofit toolkit] to gain a commercial advantage, as tenement flat owners are increasingly seeking trusted sources of information about what retrofit projects are the best fit for their homes. Ahead of the Scottish Government’s imminent introduction of a Heat in Buildings Bill,
• Empowering residents of tenements to take collective responsibility for retrofit and building maintenance, providing a ‘go-to’ resource for decision-making and governance.
  • Under One Roof reports: “it will ultimately help flat owners reduce their energy bills and make the transition to net zero carbon heating systems.”
• Influencing policy through the Policy Briefing (ongoing).