The council’s drive to improve the energy efficiency of its homes and the environment, tackle fuel poverty and enhance the lives of tenants, together with investment of £35 million, over four years, is delivering significant results.

Efficiency measures applied, include roofing and rendering, loft insulation, cavity wall insulation and external wall insulation, all of which potentially save tenants money on their bills. The council has said that it is also embracing new, renewable technologies such as solar panels which are being installed on to council properties to help improve home energy efficiency.

Plans are currently underway to deliver a pilot scheme in Pather to install single room heat recovery fans. These work by extracting and using heat from the stale air to warm up fresh air coming into the home, bringing in fresh but pre-warmed air providing ventilation, while also saving energy. It is hoped, that if successful, the scheme will be rolled out to all of the council’s properties in the future.

The council was nominated for this award in partnership with Procast, just one of the contractors helping it deliver projects aimed at improving the quality of life of its tenants and their homes.

Gerry McWilliams, service delivery manager, said: “We’re delighted that the roll out of our excellent energy efficiency measures are recognised at this level which shows we’re leading the way in putting our environment and local communities first. Our projects not only help tenants heat their homes they are also helping reduce fuel poverty levels within North Lanarkshire.

“We are committed to using the latest technology and are set to invest a further £63m over the next five years in a range of measures putting our environment and local communities first.

“The measures we’re taking also go a long way to helping us meet the Scottish Government energy efficiency standards and contribute to making Scotland carbon-free.”

North Lanarkshire Council added that it is continually in discussion with all three of its contractors, Ailsa, GMG and Procast, to explore new ways to improve energy efficiency in tenants’ homes and is looking at new battery storage units which help store energy over summer for heating homes in the winter.

Kirstie Adams, Pro-cast, added: “Procast has a long and established working relationship with North Lanarkshire Council and has allowed us to continue to work closely and collaboratively. By working together homes are now being retrofit to the highest standards to include insulation, solar panels and heat recovery ventilation.

“More recently we’ve identified the potential for installing battery storage units to complement the solar panels which has the potential to make these homes self-sufficient in the production, storage and usage of energy, potentially reducing energy bills and assisting the council and the Scottish Government to hit targets of net zero carbon.”