The programme was funded by £23.8m of investment from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and £44m from Citizen. The housing association also worked in partnership with Coventry City Council, Westdale Midlands and Sustainable Building Services (SBS) to deliver improvements to homes across the city.
Citizen customer, Stephen Cracknell, had solar panels installed on his roof by SBS and said he has really seen the benefit of them.
He said: “I’ve had six solar panels installed on the roof which help me enormously with my electricity bill, and I’m especially grateful of this going into the winter time.
"It’ll be so much cheaper for me and I couldn’t be happier with the work. I was quite surprised but I’ve seen the benefit already – it was instant. Each month I look at my bills and my electricity one has gone down by already comfortably by two thirds, so that means it's more money for shopping.
“I had a great experience while the solar panels were installed, the people doing the work and at Citizen were very professional and they did it all with me in mind. If I had any questions, they told me what they were doing and why and I was involved every step of the way.”
As part of the project Westdale has worked on 1,195 homes and SBS has worked on 741 homes.
Steve Roberts, regional director at Sustainable Building Services added: “We’re extremely proud to have worked alongside Citizen, Coventry City Council and the wider project team to deliver such an important programme across Coventry.
“More than 2,000 improved homes is a significant achievement for everyone involved, and it demonstrates what can be achieved when clients, contractors and the supply chain work together towards the same goal. SBS is proud to have played its part in improving people’s lives and communities by making homes across Coventry warmer, more energy efficient and more affordable to run, and we look forward to building on the success of this programme through future retrofit schemes.”
Adrian Bishop, Westdale Midlands managing director, said "This has been a landmark project for Westdale Midlands, delivering meaningful improvements to homes and communities across Coventry.
“Residents are already seeing the benefits of warmer, more energy-efficient homes, while the scheme has also enabled us to create new training and employment opportunities through our external wall insulation training academy. We are proud of both the environmental impact of the project and the lasting community legacy it has helped create.’’