Major Social Housing Investment Highlights Growing Need for Energy Assessors
The government’s £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme represents a major investment in housebuilding across England. However, delivering thousands of new homes will also depend on having enough qualified professionals to assess their energy performance.
The government has announced the first funding allocations under its ten-year Social and Affordable Homes Programme, which aims to deliver around 300,000 new social and affordable homes.
As part of the initial allocations, 33 housing providers across England, will receive £9.58 billion to support new developments. This includes investment across Greater Manchester, the West Midlands, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, the North East and Liverpool City Region.
In addition, at least £6 billion is expected to be allocated to housing providers in London.
The programme aims to ensure that at least 60% of the homes delivered are available for social rent, helping to address the growing demand for affordable housing across the country.
The scale of this investment is particularly welcome at a time when housing pressures remain high. Government figures show that the number of homes available for social rent fell by a net 3,834 in 2024–25, while more than 177,000 children were living in temporary accommodation in March 2026.
While funding is essential to increasing housing supply, ensuring that homes can be built, assessed and completed on time will be equally important.
New Homes Increase Demand for Energy Assessors
One important part of the housebuilding process is ensuring that every new home meets the required energy performance standards.
In England, newly constructed homes require an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) when they are completed. This provides information about a property’s energy efficiency and must be produced by a qualified On Construction Domestic Energy Assessor (OCDEA).
Unlike Domestic Energy Assessors (DEAs), who assess existing properties, OCDEAs specialise in new-build homes. They use building plans, design information and details of the completed construction to calculate a property’s energy performance and produce its EPC.
With thousands of new homes planned across England, demand for these specialist skills could increase significantly.
For councils, housing associations and developers, having access to qualified OCDEAs will be essential to meeting their assessment requirements and avoiding unnecessary delays.
This means that, alongside investment in construction, attention must also be given to developing the skilled workforce needed to support the government’s housebuilding ambitions.
Building the Workforce to Meet Demand
The government’s investment is an important step towards addressing the shortage of social and affordable housing.
Providing councils with greater opportunities to build homes, alongside continued investment in housing associations and other providers, should help increase housing supply and support local communities.
However, funding alone will not guarantee that new homes are delivered on schedule.
The construction sector must also have access to the people and skills needed throughout the building process, including qualified energy assessors.
With further funding still to be allocated under the programme, there is an opportunity for the industry to prepare for future demand by encouraging more professionals to train as OCDEAs.
This will be particularly important as the sector prepares for the introduction of the Future Homes Standard in March 2027, which will introduce higher energy efficiency requirements for new homes in England.
By investing in the right skills now, the industry can put itself in a stronger position to support the delivery of more energy-efficient homes.
Elmhurst’s Thoughts: An Opportunity for New-Build Energy Assessors
Jason Hewins, New Build Dwellings Manager at Elmhurst Energy, commented:
The government’s announcement is welcome news for the construction sector. Although this investment represents only part of the government’s wider ambition to deliver 1.5 million new homes during this Parliament, it is a positive step towards increasing housing supply.
With further policy developments expected and the Future Homes Standard coming into effect in March 2027, this is an exciting time for On Construction Domestic Energy Assessors.
Elmhurst’s OCDEA training course provides the knowledge and skills needed to get started in the new-build energy assessment sector.
Become an On Construction Domestic Energy Assessor
With investment in new housing and changes to energy performance standards, now is a good time to consider becoming an OCDEA.
Elmhurst’s OCDEA training course provides the knowledge and practical skills needed to begin working in new-build energy assessment.
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