Citizen, Westdale and SBS upgrade 2,000 Coventry homes under Warm Homes Wave Two

# What happened Citizen delivered energy-efficiency improvements to 2,000 homes in Coventry through the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund Wave Two programme. Work was carried out by Westdale Midlands and Sustainable Building Services (SBS) in partnership with Coventry City Council. Total investment for the project was £67.6 million.

# Who funded the programme

Citizen acted as the housing association lead, coordinating delivery with contractors and the local council.

# What work was carried out The programme included a mix of retrofit measures aimed at reducing energy use and running costs for residents. Specific actions mentioned in the reporting include:

• Installation of solar panels (example: a resident received six panels)
• External wall insulation (training academy created by Westdale for this work)

Contractor delivery volumes reported:

• Westdale Midlands worked on 1,195 homes
• Sustainable Building Services worked on 741 homes

The article describes the combined outcome as improvements to more than 2,000 homes across Coventry.

# Resident impact A named Citizen tenant, Stephen Cracknell, reported that the six solar panels installed on his roof cut his electricity bill by about two thirds, producing an immediate monthly saving he could reallocate to other household expenses. He also praised the professionalism of the installers and Citizen's communication during the works.

# Contractor and partner statements SBS regional director Steve Roberts said the project demonstrates what can be achieved when clients, contractors and supply chains work together and described the upgrades as making homes warmer, more energy-efficient and more affordable to run. Westdale Midlands managing director Adrian Bishop described the programme as a landmark project that created training and employment opportunities through an external wall insulation training academy and delivered meaningful improvements to homes and communities.

# Why it matters locally The scheme provides direct energy-cost relief to participating residents through renewable generation and fabric upgrades. It also created contractor-side capacity and training—Westdale explicitly set up a training academy for external wall insulation—suggesting an investment in local skills that could support future retrofit work in the city.

# Short practical takeaways

• Delivery contracts can include skills and training elements that leave a local workforce legacy, as Westdale reports having done.

# Next steps to watch Look for further announcements about Wave Three of the Warm Homes programme and any follow-on projects in Coventry that use the training and supply-chain capacity developed during this delivery.