Decarbonisation of Leeds Tower Blocks
Equans has transformed the Leeds skyline through a £25million project to significantly improve the thermal efficiency of seven tower blocks, in partnership with Leeds City Council.Decarbonisation of Leeds Tower Blocks
Equans has transformed the Leeds skyline through a £25million project to significantly improve the thermal efficiency of seven tower blocks, in partnership with Leeds City Council.
Key numbers
Key numbers
Overview
Equans has transformed the Leeds skyline through a £25million project to significantly improve the thermal efficiency of seven tower blocks, in partnership with Leeds City Council.
High-rise blocks in the Little London, Seacroft and West Park areas of the city have benefitted from upgrades to the towers’ external fabric – modernising their appearance, making them much easier to heat, and helping to reduce fuel poverty.
Our work
A striking transformation
A range of improvements have been made to 17-storey Lovell Park Grange, Lovell Park Heights and Lovell Park Towers, Parkway Court, Parkway Grange and Parkway Towers and ten-storey Moor Grange Court.
An A1-rated non-combustible external wall insulation system now envelopes the buildings, covered by a thick layer of painted render.
The roofs of Moor Grange Court and the three Parkway blocks have been improved with an insulated overlay. The roofs on the three Lovells blocks have been replaced with a new airtight and weather-resistant system.
Ventilation systems have been installed to help air circulate and reduce the likelihood of damp and mould. Pre-work repairs were made to the blocks including adding new wall ties and repairing underlying concrete structures.
Carbon bills slashed
Annual energy costs will be halved for each flat, with residents set to save up to £800 per year. Carbon emissions from each property have been cut by a third. The flats now have Energy Performance Certificate ratings of B and C – raised from pre-work ratings of D. Equans worked closely with Leeds City Council to agree the design for the project, leaning on the partnership’s combined retrofit expertise.
A sustainable future
The project received £9.6m from the Government’s Department for Energy, Security and Net Zero’s Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, with the rest of the cost met by the council. Equans’s in-house sustainability experts worked with specialist retrofit contractors to ensure all work was designed, carried out and assessed to PAS2035 standards.
Safe working at height
Equans instructed specialist contractors to erect mast climber platforms so that teams could safely apply the external insulation. Training provided by the International Powered Access Federation helped ensure the mast climbers were used efficiently to keep work on schedule.
Part of the community
Residents remained in the buildings throughout the work, with Equans’s resident liaison teams working closely with them to inform them of the processes involved and help ensure they stayed safe. At Parkway Towers, the Equans team refurbished a community room, which now provides a welcoming and warm space for residents to gather socially.
Impact
Start: January 2022
Completion: April 2024
- Improvements made to 630 flats across seven tower blocks
- Residents’ energy bills halved
- Carbon emissions reduced by a third
- Part-funded by the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund
- A1-rated non-combustible external wall insulation
- Insulated weather-resistant roof systems
- New ventilation systems
- EPC ratings improved from D to B and C
Our expertise
Equans supports businesses, communities and the public sector by mobilising its expertise to provide low-carbon energy solutions, offer cutting-edge technical and FM services and transformative regeneration across the UK & Ireland.
