Residents in Kennion Court off Knaresborough Road in Harrogate should be warmer this winter now that extensive work has been carried out to connect their properties to the gas mains.
As part of its commitment to improve services to tenants, Harrogate Borough Council in partnership with Northern Gas Networks (NGN) and Community Energy Solutions (CES) has installed around 48 metres of new gas pipe to connect eight low rise council owned flats to the mains gas network.
NGN put £7,760 of funding towards the gas infrastructure works, through their ongoing programme to tackle fuel poverty.
The properties have also had new gas condensing combi-boilers and radiators installed by Help-Link on behalf of Harrogate Borough Council. The energy efficient boilers provide residents with ‘whole house’ heating, which makes homes more comfortable during the cold winter months. Previously, the properties were heated by electric storage heaters.
Introducing gas central heating to the flats should have a positive effect on the energy rating and CO2 emissions as well as reducing the annual running costs of the flats by around 20 per cent, which helps make them more affordable to heat.
Councillor Richard Cooper, Leader of Harrogate Borough Council, said:
This is one of several programmes that the council is undertaking to improve the quality of life for residents in our district.
The work that has been done to connect these homes to the main gas network has been extensive and I would like to thank Community Energy Solutions and Northern Gas Networks for their assistance.
The Kennion Court flats will now be more comfortable for residents during the winter months, fuel costs should be reduced as they won’t have to rely on electric storage heating, and there will also be a positive impact on the environment.
Tom Bell, Head of Social Strategy at NGN said:
The North of England has one of the highest levels of fuel poverty in the country, with 24 per cent of households estimated to spend more than ten per cent of their income on heating.
Partnerships like this are incredibly important, helping households to access more affordable energy solutions by providing them with free gas connections and efficient heating systems which will ultimately make life more comfortable for people living in our region.
Lee Cattermole, Programme Director at CES said:
We are delighted that Kennion Court’s residents now have access to mains gas.
Gas central heating offers many benefits, including being more affordable and more easily controlled than alternative forms of heating.
We are looking forward to continuing this successful partnership in the future and offering these benefits to other households in the district that are currently off-gas.
Mark Overton, Area Superviser for boiler installation specialist Help-Link, said:
The boilers installed at Kennion Court are one of the highest efficiency models available.
Six of our engineers installed the heating systems, including laying steel piping which provides the highest durability as well as looking attractive for the residents.
Jack Coote is one of Kennion Court’s tenants whose property has now been linked to the gas mains. He said:
We had the work done about two weeks ago and we’ve certainly noticed the difference.
It’s so nice to get up in the morning now that it’s nice and warm in the house, and it’s great to have the hot water just when it’s needed.
The electric storage heaters we had in the flat before used to switch off at a certain time and then that was it for the evening; it’s amazing in this day and age that we couldn’t have the heating on when we wanted it on – what a difference now!
