Having been woefully let down by the Scottish Government and Energy Saving Trust we decided to press on. We are in the incredibly lucky position of being able to pay for External Wall Insulation out of our own pocket. We had initially tried to get a 0% loan from the EST in order to not just take advantage of our very own ECO payments we had been making for years, but also to smooth out the cashflow for other renovations.
In the process of trying to obtain External Wall Insulation, we have discovered we need to get not only a Structural Engineers Report (SER), but also paying for a building warrant.
I can understand requiring a SER, as it involves testing the load bearing capacity of the wall, pull-out strengths and suchlike, to ensure the building can withstand the new material being affixed to the walls.
What I CAN NOT understand is the Scottish Government requiring a building warrant fee that is a proportion of the final works fee.
What is £500 in the grand scheme of £17000? Not much really, but it is *another* barrier to entry for effective insulation of homes in the country.
With COP26 on our doorstep, Insulate Britain blocking motorways, and the possibility of leaving a dying planet to the children, the Scottish Government is still penny pinching and putting stupid little hurdles in the way of getting the job done.
In 2015 the Scottish Government became the poster child for renewable energy in the UK when it adjusted the Standard Assessment Procedure to limit Carbon Dioxide output of new build homes, and subsequently encouraged solar panels on new builds. Everywhere you go in Scotland, if you see a new build, you will see solar panels on the roof.
On the surface you will see solar panels, a great thing happening, but quietly in the background they are still dissuading existing homeowners from doing Something Useful, such as fitting External Wall Insulation.
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