Retrofit and existing buildings
Making the homes and buildings that already exist warmer, cheaper to run and less polluting. It covers the survey that works out what a building needs, the coordination that keeps the work safe and compliant, and the trades that do it.
Why it matters for Gloucestershire
The county has committed to a Retrofit Centre of Excellence and to training 200 retrofit coordinators by 2029. Most of Gloucestershire's housing stock was built before modern insulation standards, and a large part of it is listed or in a conservation area, which is why the skills needed here are not the same as a new-build site.
Careers in this sector
- Insulation installer You're up a ladder on a solid-wall terrace in Tredworth, fixing insulation board to the outside of somebody's house before the render goes on. £22k to £35k · 6 courses in the county
- Heat pump installer You're in a van with a fitter, taking an old gas boiler out of a semi in Hucclecote and putting a heat pump where the shed used to be. £24k to £38k · 6 courses in the county
- Retrofit assessor You're in a 1930s house in Podsmead with a camera, a damp meter and a tablet, working out why the back bedroom is cold and what it would cost to fix. £26k to £40k · 5 courses in the county
- Retrofit coordinator You're running a street of forty council houses in Matson: who surveys, who insulates, who signs it off, and what happens when the damp report comes back wrong. £32k to £48k · 6 courses in the county
- Glazing technician You're taking the sash windows out of a listed cottage in Painswick and putting slim double glazing in, without the conservation officer noticing the difference from the street. £23k to £36k · 7 courses in the county
Who hires for this in Gloucestershire
- Bromford Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund work cannot proceed without qualified coordinators. Named in green-skills-strategy.pdf p.11, p.16
- AccXel Industry-led construction school in Cinderford, named in the strategy for specialist insulation and groundworks. Named in green-skills-strategy.pdf p.10
- Gloucestershire Retrofit Centre of Excellence The Urban Retrofit Hub covers fabric measures including windows and doors. Named in green-skills-strategy.pdf p.16
- The Old House Consultancy Specialises in historic timber frames and has a stated special interest in historic windows. Named in conference-full-event-guide.pdf p.14
- Materials in Mind Retrofit consultancy that hosted the contemporary retrofit session at the county conference; works on coordination, circular materials and supply chain visibility. Named in retrofit-presentation.pdf p.15
Related sectors
The fabric work and the heat source are the same job seen from two ends, and both are measured and reported by the same carbon and data roles.
Real stories
No film or case study has been supplied for this sector yet. This is a Faculty input, not a build task.
Where to go next
Still to come on this page
- Real stories from people doing this work, once the Faculty supplies them
Requirements R4 · tracked on the progress page