With energy bills set to sky rocket this year, families across Wales are inevitably looking at ways they can save money on their rent and household bills. While there's no quick-fix for keeping our bills down, one new Swansea estate may hold the key to a long-term solution to the rising prices - keeping homes energy-efficient.
At Hillview Crescent in Clase, 25 new three-bedroom family homes are approaching completion - and each has been designed to reduce the amount of energy used, while generating energy from the sun via multiple solar panels on properties' roofs. The properties have been constructed as part of Swansea Council's pledge to build 1,000 new council homes between 2021 and 2031 and have cost £6.5m to be built - but this has all come from rent payments and grants. You can keep up to date with more Swansea stories by subscribing to our daily newsletter here.
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None of the funding comes from council tax, Swansea Council has explained, as the housing scheme has been funded by investment from Swansea Council plus £1.5m from the Welsh Government's Innovative Housing Grant, which pays for renewable technologies in homes in Wales. Additional funding came from the Welsh Government Affordable Housing Grant to pay for building costs.
All of the properties have solar panels and a battery to store the energy, as well as a ground-source heat pump and a mechanical ventilation and heat recovery system. And they're all completely powered by electricity - there's no gas supply to the properties.
'Our tenants will be able to keep fuel bills down'
The new properties at Hillview Crescent will be ready for their new tenants from April and May this year and straight away tenants will be saving money on their energy bills - though the exact amount they will save will differ, depending on how much energy they use.
Swansea Council explained: "[The amount of money the tenants will save from living in an energy-efficient home] will vary due to every family using their homes in different ways – each will differ in terms of how much energy they use. Monitoring of previous schemes shows that in summer - and particularly during sunny periods - some homes can be up to 100 per cent self-powered. This figure drops during the shorter days of winter.
"The homes have been designed to reduce the amount of energy used, for energy to be generated from the sun and for excess energy from the sun to be stored in the battery. The solar panels generate energy during most of the day; this is stored in the battery, enabling the occupants to be energy self-sufficient for large parts of the year."
Co-deputy leader at Swansea Council, Andrea Lewis added: "The properties at Hillview are some of Wales' most energy-efficient new homes and will be wonderful for tenants. The council team behind the new homes has done a tremendous job, building something very special.
"Good quality, affordable Swansea homes for rent are in great demand for single people and for families. We'll continue to build new homes to help meet this need. Better homes for our residents is one of the critical building blocks of creating a better future for children, for families and for our city.
"Right through the pandemic we've continued with our house-building programme because our new homes will improve people's health, reduce poverty and contribute to happier communities. Under our More Homes initiative, the new homes we're building are the first we've built in a generation. They're breaking new ground in levels of energy efficiency so our tenants will be able to keep fuel bills down.
"Our commitment to better homes will also continue to create new construction skills and hundreds of jobs for our communities. Better homes is about building a better Swansea."
As well as these properties at Hillview Crescent, 18 new homes have been built recently in Colliers Way, Penlan and eight flats have replaced the former Bryn House in Uplands. Swansea Council is also set to build new homes in West Cross, Gorseinon and Ravenhill.
