On Tuesday, 19th of May, South Yorkshire Sustainability Centre (SYSC) together with Sheffield Energy Hub hosted the Festival of Debate event - Retrofit and Residential Energy Systems: A stocktake.
The event brought together a diverse range of stakeholders - policymakers, practitioners, academics - to discuss how we can take advantage of the opportunities opened up by recent national and local policy developments. We were joined by SYSC academics representing both University of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam University, South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority, Sheffield City Council, Sheffield Community Energy, Upper Don Community Energy, Sheffield Renewables, SY Ecofit, IMS Heat pumps and more.
The morning started with the introduction to the SYSC and its Consolidated Research Report, followed by expert panel sessions, which included representatives from Sheffield City Council, North East and Yorkshire Net Zero Hub, SY Ecofit and more. The panels gave overview of the key policy developments, such as Sheffield’s Local Area Energy Plan and Warm Homes Plan and what opportunities they present to Sheffield.
In the afternoon there were two engagement sessions about retrofit and community energy, where the SYSC’s Consolidated Research Report and its recommendations served as a vehicle to aid discussion. It was brilliant to see the report truly come alive and its findings and recommendations sparking further ideas for collaborative action. There was a general consensus that the SYSC recommendations captured clear direction of action and key priorities for Sheffield and South Yorkshire, but collaboration across academia, Local Authorities, private sector and community groups was key to decide and adopt the best pathways of delivery.
Geoff Cox from the Sheffield Energy Hub commented "it was a really positive and well informed discussion between a wide range of stakeholders who were all absolutely committed to making the best long term decisions for the city and region. There was a clear feeling at the end that we should stay connected, learn from each other and collaborate in taking these recommendations forward."
The SYSC’s Consolidated Research Report can be accessed in full here.
