What the ‘Code for
Sustainable Homes’
means to you
D F Mitchell
Technical Director
Code for Sustainable Homes
• A single national standard to
cover aspects of sustainable
design and construction of new
homes in England
• EcoHomes 2006 remains in
Scotland, Wales, N Ireland
• Driving continuous
improvement and greater
innovation in sustainable home
building
• A mark of quality enabling
developers to demonstrate the
sustainability of their homes
and differentiate themselves
from their competitors
• Voluntary in short term – may
become mandatory in future
• ‘It is intended that the Code will
signal the future direction of
Building Regulations in relation
to CO2 emissions from, and
energy use in homes’
• HBF view on simplification of
the Regulations
• Stepping stones mentioned in
‘Building a Greener Future’
Zero Carbon
Code
Simplification of Regulations
Key features of the Code
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Based on EcoHomes 2006
Applied on a whole house approach
9 categories of environmental sustainability
Mandatory standards to ensure
environmental robustness
• 6 levels  rating system
What’s in the Code
•Energy/CO2
Code Categories
•Water
•Pollution
•Materials
•Health and
Well-being
•Surface Water
Run-off
•Management
•Waste
•Ecology
Minimum standards
Categories
Flexibility
Energy Efficiency
6 levels of minimum standards; one for
each level of the Code
Water Efficiency
Three levels of minimum standards, each
covering two levels of the Code
Materials
A single basic standard at Code entry
level
Surface Water Run Off
Waste
Pollution
Health and Well-Being
Management
Ecology
No minimum standards
Minimum performance
standards for Energy/CO2
Code Level
Energy Performance
Equivalent rating
Level 1
10% improvement
EST Good practice
Level 2
18% improvement
Level 3
25% improvement
EST Best practice
Level 4
44% improvement
Approx. PassivHaus / EST exemplary
Level 5
100% improvement
Level 6
Full Zero Carbon
Scoring
Code Levels
Total Points Score out
of 100
Equivalent EcoHomes
rating (approximate)
Level 1 ()
36 Points
Pass
Level 2 ()
48 Points
Good
Level 3 ()
57 Points
Very Good
Level 4 ()
68 Points
Excellent
Level 5 ()
84 Points
Level 6 ()
90 Points
Weightings (in percentages)
Energy
Potable Water
Surface Water Runoff
Materials
Waste
Pollution
Health and Well-being
Management
Site Ecology
36.4
9
2.2
7.2
6.4
2.8
14
10
12
What the ‘Code for Sustainable
Homes’ means to you
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•
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‘Goes Live’ from 10th April 2007
Voluntary
EP+HC = Communities England
Planning Conditions
10% renewables v code levels
Mandatory Assessments ?
• Under consideration by ministers
• Introduction in the future
• Requirement to carry out assessment
and display
• No specific performance requirements
Why Mandatory Assessments ?
• You might already be above Level 1
• You might be very close
• You might want to go to Level 1
(Do you want to display ‘no stars’)
Assessment
A two-stage process
• Design Stage
• Post Construction Review
• Approved Code Assessors
Customer Awareness
• Does the public
- Know
- Understand
- Care
- Want it
What next
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Code seminars - CLG/HBF
Code for buildings other than dwellings
Existing housing stock
The road to Zero Carbon 2016
Thank you
D F Mitchell
Technical Director