Draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan (www.gov.scot)
Closing Date: 9 May 2023
Response submitted by: National Insulation Association
For more information, please contact: info@nia-uk.org
About the National Insulation Association
The National Insulation Association (NIA) represents the insulation industry in Scotland and across the UK with a member base comprised of installers, system certificate holders, and manufacturers who provide a wide range of insulation solutions for homes and buildings. The NIA and its members are fully committed to maintaining and raising standards within the insulation industry.
What more can be done to support the development of sustainable, high quality and local jobs opportunities across the breadth of Scotland as part of the energy transition?
The NIA believes that the best way to support sustainable, high quality and local jobs in Scotland is through long term policy commitments, and investment in the energy efficiency industry.
With sufficient targeted investment, Scotland can benefit from the substantial employment opportunities presented by the transition to net zero homes. Retrofitting Scotland’s buildings could create as many as 108,000 jobs over the next 12-20 years, according to a report commissioned by the Scottish Trades Union Congress.1 These jobs will be environmentally, economically and socially sustainable because energy efficiency improvements reduce carbon emissions, lower energy bills and create warmer, healthier homes for residents. Insulation jobs are also high quality, skilled trades that pay well. According to Indeed, the average salary for an insulation worker in the UK is £34,2452 – above the national average. Most jobs in the insulation sector do not require a Level 6 qualification (undergraduate degree or equivalent), so employment in this sector will help to level up communities in Scotland by providing high-skilled and well-paid technical employment for school leavers without a degree. In addition, most energy efficiency work tends be localised; therefore, installations will likely be carried out by Scottish installers and businesses, thus ensuring that employment and growth opportunities remain within Scotland. There is also a significant opportunity for job creation in low-carbon manufacturing in Scotland, particularly in the manufacture of energy efficiency products such as insulation materials. In this way, investment in energy efficiency creates sustainable, high quality and local jobs.
Long-term policy certainty is also crucial for creating jobs that are sustainable. In the past, frequent changes in government policy and short-term funding schemes have contributed to a boom and bust culture within the insulation industry. Developing a national retrofit strategy and committing to longer-term funding schemes would create the policy certainty that industry needs to invest in training and skills. It would also instil a level of confidence amongst consumers to make energy efficiency improvements to their homes. This would ensure that employment in the energy efficiency industry is secure, high quality and sustainable.
To benefit fully from the future job opportunities and growth potential offered by the net zero transition in the energy efficiency sector, Scotland will need a robust supply chain with adequate capacity to install the energy efficiency measures needed to meet net zero. In order to grow the supply chain, it is vital that the Scottish Government supports Scottish insulation businesses by investing in skills and training.
This investment must be complemented by targeted information campaigns and careers advice to encourage new entrants into the sector. It is very encouraging that Scottish colleges offer an insulation apprenticeship – something that is not yet available in England. However, uptake has been minimal so far, which highlights the need for better marketing of apprenticeships and other opportunities within the insulation industry. This correlates with research conducted by L&Q which found that only one in ten children between the ages of 16 and 18 would consider a career in construction.3 To address this, the Scottish Government should introduce more signposting in schools and colleges about the opportunities in the insulation sector and the potential routes into the sector for young people. The insulation sector is a highly skilled, well-paid sector with a strong social and environmental purpose – to reduce fuel poverty and mitigate climate change. This should be emphasised more to change perceptions about the industry and attract new entrants. Attracting and training new entrants is critical if the industry is to deliver the volume of installs required to meet net zero.
The NIA is already working with the Energy Skills Partnership (Construction) to explore how the insulation industry can help Scottish colleges improve apprenticeship uptake. We believe the Scottish Government also has a central role to play in supporting Scottish colleges to market these apprenticeships, along with other training opportunities in the insulation sector. The NIA would like to offer our support to facilitate the Scottish Government’s work in this area.
What further government action is needed to drive energy efficiency and zero emissions heat deployment across Scotland?
The main action required from the Scottish Government to drive energy efficiency and zero emissions heat deployment across Scotland is to commit to further investment and action on retrofit skills.
Skills is one of the biggest issues currently facing the insulation sector. In their Building Skills for Net Zero in Scotland report, the Construction Industry Training Board found that more than three quarters (78%) of respondents believe there will be a shortage of skills in their specific occupation when it comes to decarbonisation work. Lack of training and lack of funding for training were some of the most regularly cited reasons for the absence of appropriate skills in specific roles.4 Therefore, the NIA would like to see the Scottish Government work with retrofit employers and training providers to widen the provision of retrofit training across the country. This could involve helping employers and training providers to offer subsidised technical training courses, such as SVQs in Insulation and Building Treatments. The Home Decarbonisation Skills Training Competition exists in England to fund subsidised training courses for employees in the energy efficiency, retrofit and low-carbon heating sectors. The NIA recommends that the Scottish Government introduce a similar scheme in Scotland to encourage energy efficiency businesses to invest in upskilling existing employees and training new entrants.
Investment in skills and training is crucial to guarantee quality within the industry, which is vital to ensure the best outcomes for customers. The NIA and our members are dedicated to maintaining and raising quality standards across the insulation industry. Hence, we would support greater investment in skills, so that the industry has the large, highly-skilled workforce it needs to deliver high-quality retrofit at scale. Long-term policy certainty from government is also important as it gives insulation businesses the confidence to invest in their skills needs. Frequent changes in government policy and short-term funding schemes have contributed to a boom and bust culture within the insulation industry. Developing a coherent national retrofit strategy and committing to longer-term funding schemes would create the policy certainty that industry needs to invest in training and skills.
It is excellent that Scottish colleges offer an insulation apprenticeship – something that is not yet available in England. However, uptake has been very low so far; therefore, the NIA is working with ESP (Construction) to explore how the insulation industry can help Scottish colleges improve uptake. We believe the Scottish Government also has a key role to play in supporting Scottish colleges to market these apprenticeships, along with other training opportunities in the insulation sector. The NIA offers our support to facilitate the Scottish Government’s work in this area.
There is also a need for targeted information campaigns and careers advice to encourage new entrants into the sector. At the moment, the retrofit and wider construction sector have an image problem, particularly among young people, which prevents them from attracting sufficient new entrants. Research by L&Q has found that only one in ten children between the ages of 16 and 18 would consider a career in construction.5 To address this, the Scottish Government should introduce more signposting in schools and colleges about the opportunities in the insulation sector and the potential routes into the sector for young people. The insulation sector is a highly skilled, well-paid sector (with wages above the national average6) with a strong social and environmental purpose – to reduce fuel poverty and mitigate climate change. This should be emphasised more to change perceptions about the industry and attract new entrants. Attracting and training new entrants is critical if the industry is to deliver the volume of installs required to meet net zero.
To meet its decarbonization targets, the vast majority of Scotland’s 2.62 million existing dwellings, 20,000 public buildings, and 180,000 other buildings will need to be retrofitted.7 This will require a significant expansion of the retrofit sector over the next 10-15 years, which will bring increased demand for retrofit skills and training. Significant investment in skills and training from devolved government will be necessary to ensure that the retrofit supply chain has sufficient capacity to meet future increases in demand. Without the right support for industry, there is a risk that the transition to net zero in the energy efficiency sector will be held back by a shortage of labour and skills.
The NIA welcomes the support that the Scottish Government already provides for households to install energy efficiency measures through policies such as its Area Based Schemes and Warmer Homes Scotland.8 The NIA would like to see these schemes extended and more funding committed to them, so that we can continue to tackle fuel poverty in Scotland. In addition to these fuel poverty schemes, we would like to see further support offered to incentivise able-to-pay households to make energy efficiency improvements to their properties. This is a huge market for energy efficiency improvements and one that must be addressed if Scotland is to meet its ambitious energy efficiency targets.
Is there any further action that we, or other organisations (please specify), can take to protect those on lower incomes or at risk of fuel poverty from any negative cost impact as a result of the net zero transition?
The most effective way for the Scottish Government to protect those at risk of fuel poverty would be to offer more support for households to install insulation measures. While the Scottish Government has already committed substantial resources towards this issue, the recent cost of living and energy crises has exacerbated the problem and highlighted the need to provide further support to struggling households. According to ONS figures, 35% of properties in Scotland were in fuel poverty, as of October 2022.9 Since low energy efficiency is a key contributor to fuel poverty, the delivery of energy efficiency measures, such as insulation, to fuel-poor households is one of the key levers at the Scottish Government’s disposal to tackle the fuel poverty crisis.
Insulation measures alleviate fuel poverty by reducing household energy demand and lowering energy bills for fuel-poor residents across Scotland. Research by the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit has found that annual gas bills for homes with an EPC of C could be almost £1000 lower than homes with an EPC of F. Hence, upgrading the energy efficiency of properties byinstalling insulation measures can deliver significant, much-needed cost savings to low-income households.10 Delivering subsidised insulation measures to households in fuel poverty will ensure that the net zero transition benefits the poorest and most vulnerable in Scottish society. Therefore, the NIA would like to see the Scottish Government commit to a national insulation programme as the best and most cost-effective way to lift households out of fuel poverty.
