RISE podcast

In today’s episode, Claire Brown discusses the benefits of using AI-powered solutions for heat pump installs with Caroline Bowen and Chris Arnold from Dabalox. Together they look at how AI enhances the efficiency and affordability of heat pump installations, and how housing stock owners can incorporate AI-driven solutions into various points of their retrofit strategy.   For further information vi...

How can contractors and housing providers avoid PAS 2030 suspension and maintain compliance for their projects? To explore this important issue, Jonathan Newton is joined by Chris Ferguson and Paul Dawson from LHC Procure. Their discussion covers best practices for ensuring retrofit success, and integrating lessons from past suspensions to improve installation quality, monitoring and maintenance. ...

In today’s episode, Jonathan Newton discusses The Community Retrofit Hub project with Colin Timmins and Filipe Amarante from National Energy Action (NEA). Colin and Filipe explain why The Community Retrofit Hub’s approach is to place householders central throughout the retrofit process and outline how to achieve this. The discussion covers the importance of providing end-to-end support through bui...

In today’s episode, host Jonathan Newton is joined by Dr Martin Fletcher, Senior Research Fellow at Leeds Sustainability Institute. Martin gives an overview of the Deterioration of Retrofit Insulation Performance (DRIP) report, outlines the biggest lessons learned, and explains how they can shape future retrofit initiatives.  The episode also looks at the main factors that contribute to the deteri...

How can housing stock owners incorporate lessons learned from retrofit projects to improve future initiatives? To help answer this, Steph Dylak, Programme Manager at GMCA, joins host Jonathan Newton to talk about her experiences of the HUG programme. The conversation covers the initial key objectives of the HUG programme, the evolution of these objectives during the process, challenges faced along...

In this episode Sarah McClelland talks to Dan Bowers, Head of Psychology at the University of South Wales, about the significance of technology acceptance in the retrofit industry. Together they discuss why housing stock providers should prioritise technology acceptance and how leveraging insights into this can enhance their retrofit projects.  For further information visit: https://www.southwales...

In this podcast, our host Jonathan Newton is joined by Bryan Charter, CEO at SuSy house, and Katherine Piper, Customer Operations Manager at Bristol City Leap.  Together they explore how a technology-driven app can be used as an engagement tool to complement large-scale sustainability initiatives, accelerating retrofit adoption and carbon neutrality.  For further information visit:  https://susy.h...

Claire Brown is joined by Charles Smith who is the Policy Director of Policy development at Historic England. Charles outlines what exactly is classed as a historic building, and gives an overview of Historic England Advice Notes (HEANs) and the various areas they cover. The discussion also explores how HEANs can be used and applied in order to benefit those looking to undertake a retrofit project...

Contract termination is an important topic but not one that’s often discussed. Joseph Wittenberg, Senior Consultant at Turner & Townsend, joins Jonathan Newton to explain exactly what contract termination means in the context of retrofit projects. Joseph advises what grant recipients need to be aware of when considering contract termination, the steps they can take throughout their project to...

In today’s episode Kit Knowles, Director at Ecospheric, talks to host Sarah McClelland about his background and experiences in the retrofit sector. Kit breaks down what he terms the ‘triangle of constraint’ when it comes to retrofit, and what important tools and approaches can be used to overcome these constraints by those planning their own retrofit projects. For more information visit https://ww...

Sarah Fox is the author of Small Works Contracts in Just 500 Words. In this episode, Sarah talks to host Claire Brown about the importance of effective contract management. Sarah outlines her insights into what can be done by organisations to make contracts work better for everyone involved in their retrofit  project and why an outcome focused approach is essential.   For more information vist: ht...

In today’s episode, host Claire Brown is joined by Kevin Gawtrey RICS, Senior Building Surveyor, Aldrock and Filipe Amarante, Community Retrofit Project Manager, NEA. Kevin and Filipe provide a full overview of the Fishwick retrofit project, detailing the challenges faced along the way and explaining how these challenges were overcome. They also both share their standout lessons from their wealth...

In this episode, Jonathan Newton is joined by Greta Jonsson, Architect & Retrofit Designer, Design Specifics and Amanda Reynolds, Manager, Retrofit Coordinator, Compliance Specifics, to discuss the latest information on PAS 2035. Jonathan asks Greta and Amanda what the main changes are and how these will be delivered, and for a client, how best they can ensure that they are compliant for their...

In this episode Claire Brown is joined by Ben Hebbert, Senior Sustainability Consultant at Turner & Townsend/RISE to discuss mid-mobilisation review (MMR). Ben explains exactly what MMR is, what to expect from the process at each stage and what the benefits are for Warm Homes: Local Grant recipients.  For more information visit: https://riseretrofit.org.uk/articles/warm-homes-need-to-knows-mid...

Jonathan Newton is joined by Martin Hurn, Event Director, Futurebuild, and Megan Creswell, Senior Sustainability Consultant, Turner & Townsend/RISE, to talk through all their highlights and main insights from Futurebuild 25, including the many RISE events held this year. Their discussion covers the past 5 years of the retrofit stage at Futurebuild and how it has developed during this time, The...

In this episode, host Claire Brown is joined by Andy Gouldson, Commercial Partnerships Manager, Building Centre, to talk through the key themes of ‘Retrofit 25 - What's Stopping Us?’ exhibition - an event series from The Building Centre and National Retrofit Hub.  The programme runs from 27th March to 19th September 2025. For further information visit: Building Centre Instagram.com/thebuilding...

In this episode host Jonathan Newton is joined by Jack Allen, Managing Director of Building Energy Experts. Jack breaks down all his key tips in preparing for Warm Homes including the technical roles that will need to be factored into the project, what data and surveys will need to be in place and how to approach tenant engagement. For more on this topic watch our recent Peer Presentation, hosted...

In today’s podcast we are joined by Andrea Howe, Energy Efficiency & Affordable Warmth Officer at Blackpool Council, to discuss Cosy Homes in Lancashire. Andrea explains to host Sarah McClelland exactly what the Cosy Homes scheme is and shares her key lessons and experiences from the project. The discussion covers working with private contractors, the importance of partner engagement, benefits...

In this episode we are delighted to be joined by Will Routh, Director and Co-Founder, Chirpy Heat, discussing heat networks in retrofit schemes, what the common issues are and how you can avoid them. We’ll cover how regulation changes will affect customer protection, technical standards for heat networks and their impact on retrofit, and how this will help towards improvements across the sector. ...

In this episode we’re discussing ground source heat pumps in retrofit schemes. We cover the benefits, the common issues and how to avoid them, as well as sharing top tips for anyone looking to install them. We’re delighted to be joined by Stuart Gadsden, Commercial Director at Kensa – Thank you Stuart for joining us and sharing your expertise!  For more information about Kensa   This podcast aims...

In this week's episode we’re discussing the Government-funded retrofit evaluation that took place at the end of last year. We are delighted to be joined by Giulia Dallera, Senior Research Officer and Tom Olley, Senior Net Zero Evaluation Analyst, both from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ). Together, we take a closer look into the evaluation, the process, learns learnt, o...

In celebration of National Apprenticeship Week , taking place 10 - 16 February 2025, we’re chatting to John Renwick, Communities Manager at Warmworks – an organisation founded in 2015 that has since supported the creation of more than 150 apprenticeships in their supply chain, 700 jobs, and over 3,000 training opportunities. John shares insights to Warmworks, their aims and schemes, and the import...

During this episode we're discussing the Procurement Act 2023, which goes live this February, and the impact it will have to the future of retrofit procurement activity. We're delighted to be joined by Chris Robinson. Associate Director, Contract Services and Fleur Summers, Senior Consultant, Contract Services, both at Turner & Townsend. Together we chat through the key changes and how...

In this episode we’re chatting with Natalie Gardner, RISE Support Lead, discussing the topic of consortiums and in particular consortium governance. Natalie brings her expertise from working in consortia, sharing best practice and top tips. Read the RISE Consortia Forming toolkit for more support on this topic. This podcast aims to share insights, good practices, and lessons learned from relevant...

In the UK most of us spend about 90% of our time indoors, but almost all efforts to reduce air pollution focus on the outdoors. In our latest episode we’re joined by Nic Carslaw, Professor of Indoor Air Chemistry at the University of York, to discuss indoor air quality. Nic details the research they are doing into the topic, the studies they are working on including the INGENIOUS Project and what...