Nottingham given nearly £1m to help energy saving training

Nottingham City Homes was the first housing association in the UK to pilot net-zero retrofits back in 2017

Almost £1m has been awarded to Nottingham City Council to help upskill workers in fitting out homes with energy saving measures.

The government's Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has awarded Nottingham and the wider region up to £900,000 for a skills pilot.

The money will be used to train construction workers and heating engineers in how to retrofit homes.

Council documents say funding will be given as grants to training providers.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service says retrofitting involves installing better insulation, ventilation, solar panels and heat pumps to bring down the size of the carbon footprint.

Nottingham City Homes was the first housing association in the UK to pilot net-zero retrofits and since 2017, hundreds of social houses have since been retrofitted.

The money will be delegated to the Midlands Net Zero Hub, hosted by the city council.

Create jobs

The hub is part of the government's clean growth strategy and is one of five Net Zero Hubs in England.

Council documents say up to £760,000 will be used to "award grant funding, as appropriate, to public sector partners who collaborate with the Midlands Net Zero Hub on the regional skills pilot project, alongside procuring additional support where required".

Partners will help train the heating installers and construction workers in Nottingham and the East Midlands.

Colleges and education establishments may also be given funding to help provide courses to students.

The documents say: "This funding will be managed by the Midlands Net Zero Hub, enabling skills training provision across the region in support of the low carbon economy.

"The hub is well-placed to do this, and it will generate revenue for the council and create jobs across the region."