Grove Community Housing Association always aims to seek innovate ways to develop energy efficient solutions for homes our residents live in where possible to reduce energy consumption and costs.  Read on for the story behind some of our award winning properties”.   See if there are any photos of the coverage or other details from documents sent to Fausia that you could also supplement with the detail of the St. Vincent Street retrofit.

Loughview Terrace Development

Grove’s development of 5 three bedroom houses and 4 two bedroom flats at the junction of Shore Road and Skegoneill Avenue was completed in February 2013. It was a difficult site firstly due to the steep slope and secondly because a wide area either side of the major sewer that runs under the site that could not be built over. This pushed the dwellings close to the Shore Road footpath. The scheme achieved Level 4 certification under the “Code for Sustainable Homes”. The unusual roof line is to create south facing roofs where the photovoltaic solar panels could be fitted. The development has put a vacant and untidy corner to good use.

In 2014 it won the Regeneration Award in the Royal Society of Ulster Architects Design Awards.


“Retrofit” Scheme

Eco-Energy (NI) Ltd successfully applied to the Technology Strategy Board for funding through the “Retrofit for the Future” competition to carry out extensive work to Grove’s Victorian terrace house at 9 St Vincent Street. The overall purpose of this grant was to reduce CO2 output to at least 80% of the 1990 level and provide a very comfortable house to live in. This was achieved by a high degree of insulation and air tightness, efficient heating, mechanical ventilation and heat recovery, and education of the occupants to use the systems efficiently.

The scheme has won a number of awards, including UK “Domestic Retrofit Project of the Year” in 2012 and certification as the first retrofit “Active House” in Europe. The energy savings have proved to be as good as or better than predicted. The house is also part of the SuperHomes network and is open for viewing one day in March and one in September. Booking is through the SuperHomes website
(www.superhomes.org.uk).