Climate change will hit social housing tenants hardest. Ridge Partner Brendan McCarthy contributed to a panel discussion at HOMES UK about futureproofing communities against flooding, storms, heatwaves and wildfires.

Climate change is already affecting communities, and impacts including flooding, storms, heatwaves and wildfires will become increasingly severe over the coming decades. A panel discussion at HOMES UK focused on how landlords can protect residents and futureproof their portfolios.

Chairing the sessions, Fusion21’s Oliver Mooney began by underlining the urgency and the importance of the topic: “Climate change is no longer a future scenario or a theoretical risk, and the pressures will fall most heavily on those living in social housing, where old stock, limited insulation, higher fuel poverty means residents will be especially vulnerable.”

Climate change is no longer a future scenario or a theoretical risk, and the pressures will fall most heavily on those living in social housing, where old stock, limited insulation, higher fuel poverty means residents will be especially vulnerable.

So how can we ensure homes remain safe, comfortable, healthy and affordable for years to come, while meeting commitments on decarbonisation and Net Zero? Here are our top takeaways, broken into three key challenges and three potential solutions for overcoming them.

Challenge #1: Climate change will have major implications for asset strategies

From 2026, the new UK Sustainability Reporting Standards will force listed companies to disclose their exposure to climate change. “That will filter through to the finance houses and feed into the insurance market, and there will be stranded assets that we can’t sell or insure,” said Richard Ellis, Peabody director of sustainability. “That’s coming slowly, but it will hit. And if there’s a big event, it’ll hit quite fast.”

Challenge #2: Financial risk is only half the story

Peabody has modelled the financial risks to its portfolio of 109,000 homes, but Richard highlighted a gap between that high-level analysis and how residents will be affected. “We can put assets into a long-term financial band, but the idea that the climate is changing isn’t hitting hard enough. As a sector, people know that we need to get to EPC C, but they don’t understand that we’re not in a static world. It’s going to be really difficult for our residents: London is going to have the same climate as Barcelona, but they’ve had hundreds of years to get their buildings right. We’ve only got 25.”

It’s going to be really difficult for our residents: London is going to have the same climate as Barcelona, but they’ve had hundreds of years to get their buildings right. We’ve only got 25.

Challenge #3: Climate resilience projects are a harder sell than retrofits

Futureproofing properties against climate change can be just as disruptive for residents as decarbonising them – without the incentive of lower energy bills. “If there isn’t a financial benefit, or if something costs more, it’s going to be very challenging to put that argument across,” said Robbie McKinnon, decarbonisation and energy performance contract manager at Axis Europe. “I think there are benefits that we can wring out, but there’s always got to be an advantage to get people onside.”

Solution #1: Take advantage of better climate data

Data on climate hazards like overheating, wildfires, drought and flooding is getting better, said Ridge Partner and national flood risk management lead Brendan McCarthy. The Environment Agency has launched updated maps that allow anyone to zone in on the flood risk to their home, now and in the future. “The maps don’t just show the probability of flooding, but the depth too. That’s really useful because we can see whether floodwater is likely to enter a property. It also means we can now do really quick portfolio assessments, and then add in data from other sources to prioritise the risk.”

Solution #2: Mitigate climate impacts, don’t just react

People tend to underestimate the likelihood and the impacts of flooding, said Brendan. “When flooding occurs, it’s a big story and there’s a government announcement, but then it drops off the agenda. But behind the scenes, people are unable to return to their homes for months, particularly if they don’t have insurance, which can be more expensive in flood-prone areas. We need to be more proactive. We can use the data to understand the risks, and then we can manage them before flooding occurs.”

When flooding occurs, it’s a big story and there’s a government announcement, but then it drops off the agenda. But behind the scenes, people are unable to return to their homes for months, particularly if they don’t have insurance, which can be more expensive in flood-prone areas.

Solution #3: Design new homes so they won’t need retrofitting in future  

We’re not building new homes for the temperatures we know they will have to withstand, and that’s creating a problem for the future, said Richard. “This is where we can reduce the risk both to our residents and to our business, but we’re almost incentivised not to do it.”

We’re not building new homes for the temperatures we know they will have to withstand, and that’s creating a problem for the future.

Demographics will exacerbate climate risk too, pointed out Daniel Jolley, head of decarbonisation at Bell Group. “We have a growing, ageing population. If we just design homes for the population and the occupancy that we have now, in 20 years’ time that will create extra demand not only on the homes but on all of our energy and water infrastructure as well.”

Ridge works with housing providers to futureproof communities, and deliver safe, resilient homes. Our Flood Risk Management team helps clients to maximise the development potential of sites, using the latest flood maps and modelling techniques. Our Property Consultancy teams incorporate flood risk into asset performance modelling and business plans, balancing it against competing elements to inform future investment. We also provide interdisciplinary services to support residential projects across every RIBA stage of work, from site appraisals through to planning, design and construction.

Brendan McCarthy leads our climate risk assessment work for housing clients, and is national Flood Risk Management lead at Ridge. Contact him at brendanmccarthy@ridge.co.uk