An estate in Bletchley is going to be the first of the council’s housing stock to get a slice of a £50million investment in cutting energy bills.
Granby Court was spotted as the worst offender in a Milton Keynes Council list of housing which is leaking the most heat – and a £420,000 investment hopes to plug the gaps.
A meeting earlier this week heard that a major slice of the money has been provided by the Government – but the council has to spend it before the start of the 2021-22 financial year.
The scrutiny management committee was told that there is no time to consult with residents on the scheme. There are 200 properties in the Granby Court area.
A council spokesman said this could include the installation of solar panels, air source heat pumps, building management systems, and cavity wall insulation.
One of the area’s three ward councillors Elaine Wales (Lab, Bletchley Park) welcomed it as “really good news. The residents will be very pleased to hear that.”
After the meeting Cllr Wales said: “It’s so nice to have some good news about Granby Court. It is in a great location and a fantastic place to live.
“People’s bills will be cheaper,” she added.
The council found Granby Court to be at the top of its carbon emissions list, and it will be able to save more than 460 tons of the greenhouse gas.
Saving carbon dioxide is set to mean cheaper energy bills for residents, but the council’s housing portfolio holder, Cllr Emily Darlington (Lab, Bletchley East) said the impact is still being assessed.
“It will help us tackle fuel poverty and lower people’s bills, which is so important at the moment,” she said.
Cllr Darlington said the work will be centred on communal areas, meaning that residents would not have to move out. However she emphasised that the full details are yet come, and she is awaiting a report from officers.
Fuller details will be available in December, when council plans are due to be considered by the all-powerful cabinet.
At the scrutiny management committee meeting on Tuesday, Neil Allen, the council’s head of regulatory services, said the “project is ready to go.”
Over the next three years the council plans to focus on sheltered housing and large blocks of properties including Everglade, in Eaglestone, Furze House, and Bellfounder House, in Bradwell.
