Without a change in attitudes and government action the UK could face a building retrofit crisis, warns a new report.

The Role of Retrofitting our Non-Domestic Buildings in the Race to Net Zero, by Ridge and Partners LLP, shows that fewer than one in four public or private sector organisations is attempting to make their non-domestic premises more environmentally sustainable and just one in ten is assigning any kind of budget to retrofitting buildings to reduce their environmental impact.

According to the property and facilities heads from leading UK organisations questioned for the report, lack of Government action is a key problem, with 52 per cent believing that VAT on refurbishments should be removed, and almost half (49 per cent) say business rates discourage retrofit.

A further problem is the attitude of UK boards, both to their buildings and to those who manage them. For instance, despite 76 per cent of organisations working towards net-zero, 55 per cent of facilities managers say their boards simply do not see retrofitting buildings as part of their net-zero strategy.

Matt Richards, Partner at Ridge and Partners, commented: “Too many organisations appear to assume that come 2050 our existing building stock will have been replaced with more efficient new buildings, but this simply isn’t the case. The bulk of buildings we see around us will still be in use. As a result, vast swathes of UK organisations are sleepwalking towards a building crisis.”

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