Sturgeon hails £10m green homes bid

Sep 25 2012

More eco-friendly homes could be built as part of a £10 million scheme announced by the Scottish Government.

The money is aimed at "affordable" homes that employ environmentally-friendly methods of off-site construction.

Walls, floors, pipes, kitchen and roof can be assembled in a factory then taken to the building site in an attempt to reduce waste.

Applications for the fund can be made by councils, housing associations, builders and developers by December 20.

Infrastructure Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said: "Scotland's house-building industry makes a sizeable contribution to Scotland's economic prosperity.

"Houses are key sources of carbon emissions, so new technologies are essential to ensure we deliver energy efficient and low carbon affordable homes.

"The Greener Homes Innovation Scheme will encourage modern methods of construction, thereby making more fuel-efficient housing widely available, which will help to cut energy bills and tackle fuel poverty."

Research by Edinburgh Napier University suggests growth in off-site manufacturing, with export opportunities capable of securing 500 new jobs.

Philip Hogg, chief executive of industry body Homes for Scotland, said: "The Greener Homes Innovation Scheme is just one of the creative measures which is being utilised to secure new opportunities through the low carbon economy, demonstrating that there has never been a better time to invest in a newly-built home.

"At a time when energy bills have rocketed, schemes such as this can make a real difference to the provision of desperately needed new homes while also providing some relief to pressured household budgets."