A New Approach to Improving Energy Efficiency in Listed Properties?

The rules surrounding alterations to listed properties have long presented a difficult balancing act. On the one hand, we rightly want to protect the historic character and fabric of our older properties. On the other, those properties still have to function as homes in the 21st century. However, that balance may now be beginning to shift.

I've written about this shift in direction in a previous post when Historic England released its advice notice on energy and carbon efficiency in historic buildings. Changes to England's National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) mean that local planning authorities are being asked to give greater weight to measures that improve the energy efficiency of buildings and help them adapt to climate change. Energy-efficiency and low-carbon improvements are now specifically recognised as an 'important public benefit', while 'substantial weight' is to be given to the benefits of improving a building's energy efficiency.

This is potentially significant for the owners of listed properties.

The problem with older buildings

Listed properties are protected because of their architectural or historic interest. As a result, alterations that affect that special character generally require listed building consent. Historically, this could make even relatively modest improvements to energy efficiency difficult to achieve.

A recent campaign by the Duke of Westminster, whose property company owns a large portfolio of listed buildings, argued that the existing regulatory system could make it unnecessarily difficult to modernise historic buildings, with the risk that they become increasingly expensive and uncomfortable to occupy.

His central point was that a building cannot be preserved simply by preventing people from changing it. It also has to be properly maintained and capable of being lived in.

Does this mean anything goes?

No — and this is an important distinction. The change does not mean that owners of listed properties can suddenly install whatever insulation, windows, heating systems or renewable-energy technology they like.

The planning system will still have to consider the potential harm to a building's architectural and historic character. The change is that the balance has shifted: energy efficiency and climate resilience should now carry greater weight when that judgement is made.

And there is still considerable uncertainty about how individual local authorities will interpret the new guidance. Listed properties vary enormously in age, construction and significance, so there is unlikely to be a single solution that works for every property. Ultimately, planning decisions and, where necessary, appeals will help establish how the new policy is applied in practice.

Why the way a building is repaired matters

This is where traditional building methods become particularly important. Many historic buildings were constructed using materials such as lime mortar, lime plaster, timber, wattle and daub and other materials that behave very differently from the modern, relatively impermeable materials used in much contemporary construction.

Improving the performance of an old building therefore isn't necessarily about simply adding as much insulation as possible or sealing every gap; it is about understanding how the building works.

Repairing defective pointing, restoring lime render, addressing damaged masonry, repairing timber and dealing properly with areas where moisture is entering the building can all form part of a sensible approach to improving the condition and performance of an older property.

In some circumstances, carefully considered insulation and other energy-efficiency measures can then be introduced without compromising the way the historic building manages moisture.

This is particularly important with listed properties, where preserving the building's historic fabric should remain central to any improvement programme.

Conservation and energy efficiency don't have to be opposites

Perhaps the most encouraging aspect of the policy change is that it recognises something that those who work with old buildings have understood for a long time: conservation and improvement do not necessarily have to be opposing objectives.

A well-maintained historic building is far more likely to survive for another hundred years than one which is allowed to deteriorate because every possible intervention is considered too difficult.

The revised guidance recognises benefits beyond simply reducing energy consumption, including measures that help buildings cope with overheating, flooding and other extreme weather. That is a much broader and, arguably, more useful way of looking at the problem.

A more sympathetic approach to listed buildings

At Churchgate Heritage, our work is centred on repairing and maintaining traditional buildings using methods and materials appropriate to their construction. That means working with the building rather than treating it like a modern structure.

For owners of listed and historic properties, this approach is particularly important. The objective should not simply be to make an old building look good from the outside. It should be to understand its construction, repair the underlying problems and preserve the historic fabric, wherever possible. The recent changes to planning policy are encouraging because they appear to recognise that protecting our historic buildings also means allowing them to evolve carefully.

The challenge now is to make sure that this change in policy translates into a more pragmatic approach on the ground — one that allows owners to improve the performance and resilience of their homes while continuing to respect what makes them historically significant.

For historic buildings, the future of conservation may not be about keeping them frozen in time. It may be about finding better ways to ensure that they can continue to be lived in, maintained and enjoyed for generations to come.

Thinking about improving a listed or historic property?

Changes to planning policy may make some energy-efficiency and climate-adaptation measures easier to justify, but every building is different. Before deciding how to proceed, it is important to understand the construction and condition of the building and to consider how proposed work will affect its historic fabric.

Churchgate Heritage specialises in the repair and conservation of traditional buildings, including lime mortar and plaster, wattle and daub, masonry, timber and flint. We can also work alongside architects and other specialists where listed building consent or more extensive alterations are involved.