A project to help tackle fuel poverty for 200 Dunedin Canmore tenants has scooped a top energy-efficiency award.

The Edinburgh-based association, part of Wheatley Group, won the Regional Small Scale Project of the Year Award at the Annual Scottish Energy Efficiency Retrofit Awards for its HEAT Challenge 2015 scheme.

The project involved installing cavity wall and loft insulation to over 200 homes in Edinburgh, helping making them warmer and more energy-efficient while saving tenants money on their bills. HEAT Challenge 2015 secured £250,000 of grant funding from the Energy Savings Trust Greenhomes cashback scheme.

Dunedin Canmore chief executive, Ewan Fraser, said: “Across Wheatley Group, we are investing more and more in technologies and initiatives to address fuel poverty among our customers. We are delighted to receive this award and we appreciate the recognition of our determination to do the best for our customers and the environment.”

The project, a partnership between Dunedin Canmore, Insulation Solutions Scotland and The Smith Emsley Partnership, has significantly increased the energy efficiency of the homes while exceeding the Scottish Government’s target for ‘Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing’.

HEAT Challenge 2015 is in addition to Dunedin Canmore’s ‘Energy 2020’ initiative which aims, over the next four years, to upgrade most of the housing association’s homes that still have electric heating by converting them to gas heating where possible.

Dunedin Canmore has now secured a further £250,000 grant from the Energy Savings Trust to allow improvements, including internal wall and cavity insulation, to help make 200 more homes warmer and cheaper to heat.