British Institute of Interior Design

The British Institute of Interior Design (BIID) held its first conference on Friday, 11 March, which revealed the secrets to lowering the carbon emissions of the UK’s older housing stock. Around 150 professional interior designers attended the Retrofit Conference, which was held at Chelsea Harbour Design Centre in London, and closed with the presentation of first Retrofit Design Awards.

Conference delegates heard from more than a dozen leading experts in environmentally friendly retrofit design, including designer Wayne Hemingway; Katy Lithgow, Head Conservator at the National Trust; and lighting designer Sally Storey.

The day began with a talk from the Government’s Chief Construction Adviser, Paul Morrell, who stressed the urgency of addressing the causes and effects of climate change, and set out the scale of the problem. The Government, he explained, was aiming for an 80% cut in carbon emissions from housing by 2050 – but while new homes were being built to stricter environmental standards, that still left around 25 million older homes urgently in need of improvement. If improvements weren’t made voluntary, he warned: “We will have to tell people at some point that their houses are illegal.”

The next speaker was Colin Butfield, Head of Campaigns at wildlife charity WWF-UK. He told delegates that being green had to be made “more affordable, more attractive and more normal” .The charity runs the Great British Refurb Campaign, which aims to show how low-cost improvements to older housing can make a big difference to both carbon emissions and comfort.

Oliver Novakovic, Director of Housing Futures at BRE (Building Research Establishment), urged designers to take a dual approach – creating buildings that use less energy and buying energy efficient products, and he revealed the cost of improving a building’s carbon footprint - £4,000 for a 40 per cent reduction in carbon emissions, up to a staggering £300,000 to turn an older property into a zero carbon home. James Pack, Director of construction company Skansen, followed on by explaining the Ska Rating, an assessment tool for sustainable fit-outs.

While new homes are designed to be air-tight to keep heating costs low, Head Conservator of the National Trust, Katy Lithgow, warned that in older properties this can cause excess humidity, damaging furniture and fittings and leading to poor air quality.  She spoke of the wide range of approaches that the Trust was taking to improve the carbon footprint of its housing stock, from radical solutions such as photovoltaic ‘slates’ at Kynance Cove and solar panels at Dunster Castle, to traditional methods such as blinds, heavy curtains and shutters.

Design Director at John Cullen Lighting, Sally Storey, explained how the new Part L Building Regulations mean that three quarters of lights in a project must now be low energy. She explained the types of lamp and how to use them, and also illuminated the audience on the new system of  light bulb packaging which will see  light brightness measured in Lumens rather than in Watts.

Sustainable Design Enabler and author of The Eco-Design Handbook, Alastair Fuad-Luke, then presented what he called a toolkit for more holistic design. This 10-point plan urged designers to consider points such as the ‘embedded energy’ of an existing item before choosing whether to replace it, and moving towards a ‘closed loop’ whereby products can be constantly recycled. “The real skill you can bring is how to make all this eco stuff desirable,” he told the audience.

A panel discussion chaired by idFX magazine editor Kate Burnett brought together Fuad-Luke with Glen Irwin (Sustainability Director at Gifford); Lucy Pedler (architect and founder of The Green Register), and MD of Parity Projects, Russell Smith. A lively discussion ensued, covering such topics as how to choose a green team and how to engage clients with environmental issues. Lucy Pedler was critical of the slow pace of change: “We are mired in inertia, in this county you just want business as usual, get the job done and go down the pub,” she complained. “I want to quadruple energy prices – as soon as your pocket is hit, things will change. I’m a big fan of sticks, I’ve gone off carrots.”

The final speaker of the day was Wayne Hemmingway, who gave a hilarious account of the thriftiness of his upbringing, and how his granddad’s ability to fix the cracked soles of Dr Martens boots with a soldering iron led to the teenager making thousands of pounds on Camden Market. He went on to describe some of the refurbishments of old blocks of flats and housing estates that his company was currently undertaking, and how these were changing the lives of residents. “Sustainability is about a lot more than how a building performs,” he says. “It’s about how a building is loved.”

THE RETROFIT AWARDS SPONSORED BY GROHE www.grohe.co.uk

SUSTAINABLE PRODUCT AWARD 2011

Winner: Seed Homes www.seedhomes.co.uk

The prefabricated panel building system from Seed Homes was chosen for the high usage of local materials, efficient in-factory construction and ability to use low grade certified timber. The panels, insulated with recycled newspaper, also have good air tightness, and a low u-value.

Highly Commended: Furniture Divas www.furnituredivas.co.uk

The bespoke refurbished pieces from Furniture Divas were commended for their thoughtful attention to aesthetics and material sourcing.

RETROFIT PROJECT AWARD 2011

Winner: Oliver Heath www.oliverheath.com

The retrofit of Oliver Heath’s 1960s house in Brighton was chosen for being a well-designed and efficiently executed project that shows a good all-round awareness of the key sustainability issues and a desirable aesthetic, but most importantly achieved 62% reduction in carbon emissions. The

Judges felt that the project would inspire other homeowners to choose a sustainable retrofit.

Second: Edward Bulmer www.edwardbulmer.co.uk

The retrofit of Edward Bulmer’s Grade II listed estate, Court of Noke, in Pembridge, was a close second, after judges admired the light touch of the retrofit which had produced carbon and cost savings while retaining the historic integrity of the building.

Highly Commended: Julian Harrap Architects www.julianharraparchitects.co.uk

The retrofit of a shop front in Whitechapel High Street was commended for being a simple, sustainable solution to urban regeneration.