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Home-Grown Homes Project Update

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June 2024

This update has been prepared by David Hedges, our Head of Housing and the Home-Grown Homes project manager.

Read previous Project Updates:

Meet the team in person

All of the Woodknowledge Wales team will be at WoodBUILD in Swansea at the beginning of July – come and meet us. We’ve been working on putting together a programme of plenary speakers and breakout session presenters with a focus on much of our project work in Phase two of the Project. These will include a focus on forest management, inspiring young people to work in the forest industries, natural fibre insulation, best practice in the use of home-grown timber, building standards, the circular economy and school construction, embodied carbon and footprint assessment tools and the Gwynfaen Project. There will also be an opportunity to hear about the content of Wales’ forthcoming Timber Industrial Strategy. For a detailed programme and to book, please visit our event page.

Timber Industrial Strategy consultation is approaching

The Strategy is now expected to be published for consultation in the autumn subject to final sign-off. We have been completing case studies on the timber supply chain, from growing trees, through processing and advanced timber manufacturing, to the use of timber and timber products on construction projects. They will support the work Welsh Government is doing on its strategy and illustrate some of the opportunities that the Timber Industrial Strategy will help to unlock.

Collaborative connections to meet tree planting targets

We’re finalising details with Bangor University and a specialist consultancy to help take forward one of our project tasks, which is to look at how tree planting on farms could be scaled-up. The task will explore the potential to enable farms to trade obligations to reach targets for tree planting. An engagement exercise, including surveys and workshops with stakeholders, will aim to assess interest and a willingness to participate in a collaboration. If implemented, this proposed initiative would reduce management costs and improve ecosystem service provision through benefits of scale.

Project passes muster

The second independent review of the project was completed in May and we’re working on a number of recommendations to improve reporting, communication and risk management as a result. There are a number of recommendations on the role, function and membership of the Steering Group which will be considered at the next meeting at the end of June.

PRESS RELEASE: Huw Irranca-Davies to address wood value chain members at WoodBUILD 2024

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From farming and forestry, through processing and manufacturing, to designing and building homes, Wales’ wood value chain will work together towards a more resilient future for our environment and the Welsh people

29 May 2024, Cardiff, UK: On 2 July 2024 at 9:30AM, Huw Irranca-Davies MS, The Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change & Rural Affairs (Ysgrifennydd y Cabinet dros Newid Hinsawdd) will present to participants from across the wood value chain at WoodBUILD 2024. Hosted by Woodknowledge Wales, this year’s conference will be held in at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David IQ Building in Swansea from 2-3 July.

“I’m delighted that the new The Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change & Rural Affairs, Huw Irranca-Davies MS, will be making the keynote address on day one of our conference. Now with responsibility for both the Sustainable Farming Scheme proposals and the emerging Timber Industrial Strategy, his perspective should be of huge interest to our network, from forestry through to timber construction. WoodBUILD, since its inception in 2016, has always been well supported by Welsh Government with past Ministerial addresses from Julie James MS, Cabinet Secretary for Housing, Local Government and Planning, in her previous roles as Housing Minister and then as Minister for Climate Change.” Gary Newman, CEO, Woodknowledge Wales.

In addition to the Ministerial address, WoodBUILD participants can look forward to a keynote speech from Paul King, CEO, Built by Nature, an industry leader debate on how to create more resilient wood value chains, an update from Welsh Government on progress towards Wales’ first Timber Industrial Strategy, two book launches, and a host of useful and insightful workshops, demonstrations, immersive experiences and exhibits.

Farmers and foresters must stick together

In The Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change & Rural Affairs’ recent written cabinet statement on the Future of Farming in Wales, published on 14 May 2024, he wrote that the Welsh Government, working with Farming Connect, will: “…continue to promote the benefits and opportunities of tree cover and woodland on farms and work on knowledge transfer…” and delayed the transition from the Basic Payment Scheme to the Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS) until 2026.

There has been a great deal of unbalanced media speculation following the farming protests earlier this year, which culminated in rallies outside the Welsh Senedd. The popular press tends to single out the 10 per cent tree-planting target under the draft Sustainable Farming Scheme as the main impetus behind these protests. However, a recent article, written by Deputy Editor Jack Haugh and published in the Forestry Journal on 1 May, calls this out as unfair bias. In the article, Huw Morris, a woodland estate manager with a farming heritage rooted in Powys, notes that tree-planting is just “one small issue among many things” and, while Morris does not believe trees on farms will be purposely planted to produce timber, he does make it clear that “Farmers and foresters…[ ]… need to stick together, and not be pitted against one another. Singling out tree planting is an easy way to demonise farmers. We need to balance the message because it’s not really what the protests are about.”

Woodknowledge Wales works across the wood value chain with a mission to purposefully develop Wales’ forest industries from tree to product to benefit the economy, the environment and the people of Wales. Well considered land use, and co-operation between farmers and foresters, is essential to this mission.

How to create more resilient wood value chains

The WoodBUILD conference and expo brings together wood value chain stakeholders to discuss progress and consider next best steps towards an economic and environmentally beneficial forest industry for Wales. Woodknowledge Wales stakeholders include land users who plant trees, all the way through primary and secondary processors and timber product and timber frame manufacturers, to representatives from the built environment sector who build with timber. These include professionals focused on designing, manufacturing and building homes using both traditional and innovative construction models and social housing developers responsible for commissioning Welsh homes.

This year, the conference will also include a day two keynote presentation from Paul King, CEO of Built by Nature, a network and grant-making fund dedicated to accelerating the timber building transformation in Europe. This keynote presentation will be followed by an industry leader debate between Paul King, Charlotte Hale (CEO, SO Modular), Jonathan Poynton (MD, Pontrilas Sawmills), and Tim Clement (Director of Social Value & Sustainability, Morgan Sindall Construction): How to create more resilient wood value chains and rise up to tomorrow’s challenges in the spirit of collaboration, 09:30 – 11:00, 3 July.

A Timber Industrial Strategy for Wales

Home Grown Homes project (HGH) (Prosiect Cartrefi O Bren Lleol) is a key project for Woodknowledge Wales. Supported by Welsh Government, one of the current phase two project tasks focuses on assisting in the development of the emerging Timber Industrial Strategy. WoodBUILD 2024 participants, can therefore also look forward to the day two Welsh Government workshop update on the progress of its Timber Industrial Strategy for Wales: The Timber Industrial Strategy: Making wood work for Wales, 14:00, 3 July.

Two new authors salute Super Sitka as a woodland hero

Images: The Sitka spruce A) as depicted in Figure 6.3, Timber! by Paul Brannen (2024, p98, Source: Shutterstock) B) Illustrated by Emily Hocking in Jenny Bailey’s storybook, ‘Sitka the Amazing Timber Tree’ (2024, p4)

Also, at WoodBUILD 2024, participants will enjoy the Welsh launch of two new timber-focused books. Paul Brannen’s new book, ‘Timber! How wood can help save the world from climate breakdown’ and Jenny Bailey’s children’s picture book and audio book, ‘Sitka the Amazing Timber Tree’ published in both Welsh and English. Both books salute the Sitka spruce as a woodland hero, rightfully reframing the narrative around what was once a poster species for long-ago defunct forest monoculture planting practices.

“…although much-maligned, given the climate and latitude of the UK, no tree can grow faster, and no tree can absorb more carbon dioxide while at the same time producing good-quality commercial timber”, writes Paul Brannen, Timber!, (Agenda Publishing, 27 June 2024, p99, now available to pre-order)

“As the tree of choice for forestry across the country, I’ve been growing here for 40 years, and now my timbers are straight and mature, just right for what you need for building and creating your environment”, says the Sitka spruce, as personified by Jenny Bailey in ‘Sitka the Amazing Timber Tree’ (Tales from Mother Earth™, 2024, p3)

Paul and Jenny will both be available at WoodBuild, so you can speak directly with the authors, grab your copies and get them signed while networking and enjoying the broader industry knowledge share workshops.

About WoodBUILD 2024

WoodBUILD 2024 will engage Timber and Construction Industry stakeholders in a collaborative effort to build new, multi-disciplinary business opportunities and regenerative solutions. Sponsored by Morgan Sindall Construction, Wales & West Housing, The University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UWTSD), Construction Wales Innovation Centre (CWIC) and Welsh Government, participants will enjoy two days of knowledge share, debate, networking and exhibitions. Conference tickets are on sale via the WoodBUILD registration page. Find out more about WoodBUILD and keep up with exciting additions to the programme by signing up to the Woodknowledge Wales newsletter and via the Woodknowledge Wales news pages.

Two new authors salute the Sitka Spruce as a woodland hero

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WoodBUILD 2024 to host the Welsh launch of Paul Brannen’s book ‘Timber!’ and Jenny Bailey’s storybook ‘Sitka the Amazing Timber Tree‘

Images: The Sitka Spruce A) as depicted in Figure 6.3, Timber! by Paul Brannen (2024, p98, Source: Shutterstock) B) Illustrated by Emily Hocking in Jenny Bailey’s storybook, ‘Sitka the Amazing Timber Tree’ (2024, p4)

During WoodBUILD 2024, UWTSD IQ Building, Swansea, 2-3 July, participants will enjoy the Welsh launch of two new timber-focused books. Paul Brannen’s new book, ‘Timber! How wood can help save the word from climate breakdown’ and Jenny Bailey’s children’s picture book and audio book, ‘Sitka the Amazing Timber Tree’.

Both books salute the Sitka spruce as a woodland hero, rightfully reframing the narrative around what was once a poster species for long-ago defunct forest monoculture planting practices.

“…although much-maligned, given the climate and latitude of the UK, no tree can grow faster, and no tree can absorb more carbon dioxide while at the same time producing good-quality commercial timber”, writes Paul Brannen, Timber! (2024, p99)

“As the tree of choice for forestry across the country, I’ve been growing here for 40 years, and now my timbers are straight and mature, just right for what you need for building and creating your environment”, says the Sitka Spruce, as personified by Jenny Bailey in ‘Sitka the Amazing Timber Tree’ (2024, p3)

Timber! How wood can help save the word from climate breakdown’ by Paul Brannen


The built environment is currently responsible for 40 percent of global carbon emissions. So why haven’t we transitioned from steel and concrete to more environmentally friendly building materials?

In his new book, Paul Brannen’s message is unequivocal: we must change how we build. Timber! offers fresh and inventive ideas that over time could see our expanding cities storing more carbon than our expanding forests. In addition to traditional forestry models, the book explores alternatives such as wood farming and agroforestry that bring with them added biodiversity gains for farms.

Agenda Publishing, Timber! press release

This book brings timber from the periphery to the forefront, bridging the gap between forests and urban areas. Paul directly addresses sustainability, safety, the biodiversity of commercial forests, and land use pressures. The book leverages the latest advancements in engineering and material science to support its case for timber. The author advocates for timber as a construction material, highlighting the creation of engineered timbers with the strength of steel and concrete, making wooden skyscrapers possible. Additionally, he explores non-traditional forestry practices such as wood farming and agroforestry, which contribute to biodiversity gains on agricultural lands.

Paul Brannen is Director of Public Affairs for the European Organisation of the Sawmill Industry and the European Confederation of Woodworking Industries. He also works for Timber Development UK.

Sitka the Amazing Timber Tree by Jenny Bailey

Once upon a time, in a big forest, there stood a very special tree called the Sitka Spruce. This tree wasn’t just any tree – it was amazing! Let Jenny Bailey, author and co-founder of publisher Tales from Mother Earth, tell your children its story. Available in print and audio versions, in both Welsh and English, this book aims to bring the world of commercial forestry to life for children.  

Jenny Bailey’s book, Sitka the Amazing Timber Tree, was illustrated by Emily Hocking. The audio version is read by Craig Dempsey and Jenny Bailey, with music composed by Chris Symons. The publication was sponsored by Morgan Sindall Construction and launched to English speaking audiences on the Nature Stage at Footprint+ as part of the Building with Nature: An opportunity for construction and society session on 8 May 2024.

“This book is all about hope. It focuses on a crucial part of our future built environment: renewable materials. It makes it clear that materials like wood can’t be thrown away when they’re no longer needed; we need to find a way to use them again, and again, and again. And the use of renewable materials creates jobs; meaningful, worthwhile, purposeful jobs, where responsible stewardship of nature not only helps us restore our lost habitats, but also yields construction products which lock away carbon dioxide for a long time. I’m so excited that this book will be in the hands of those who will find new ways of creating the inspiring places of the future.” Timothy Clement, Director of Social Value and Sustainability, Morgan Sindall Construction

Meet the authors and pick up your signed copy at WoodBUILD 2024

Paul and Jenny will both be available at WoodBuild, so you can speak directly with the authors, grab your copies and get them signed while networking and enjoying the broader industry knowledge share workshops.

Huw Irranca-Davies to speak at WoodBUILD 2024

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The Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs will address the timber supply chain on 2 July in Swansea

Huw Irranca-Davies MS
Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs | Ysgrifennydd y Cabinet dros Newid Hinsawdd
Source: Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament 

On 2 July 2024, The Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change & Rural Affairs (Ysgrifennydd y Cabinet dros Newid Hinsawdd) will present to participants from across the timber supply chain at WoodBUILD 2024.

In The Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change & Rural Affairs’ recent written cabinet statement on the Future of Farming in Wales, published on 14 May 2024, he wrote that the Welsh Government, working with Farming Connect, will:

…continue to promote the benefits and opportunities of tree cover and woodland on farms and work on knowledge transfer…

Huw Irranca-Davies, Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs \ Ysgrifennydd y Cabinet dros Newid Hinsawdd

“I’m delighted that the new Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change & Rural Affairs, Huw Irranca-Davies MS, will be making the keynote address on day one of our conference. Now with responsibility for both the Sustainable Farming Scheme proposals and the emerging Timber Industrial Strategy, his perspective should be of huge interest to our network, from forestry through to timber construction. WoodBUILD, since its inception in 2016, has always been well supported by Welsh Government with past Ministerial addresses from Julie James MS, Cabinet Secretary for Housing, Local Government and Planning, in her previous roles as Housing Minister and then as Minister for Climate Change.” Gary Newman, CEO, Woodknowledge Wales.

Talking cost-effective Whole Life Carbon reduction at Footprint+

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Gary Newman chairs Morgan Sindall’s Regenerative Twin workshop on the Nature Stage in London on 15 May

During day two of the international Footprint+ conference, held on 14-15 May 2024 at Old Billingsgate, London, our own Gary Newman was asked to jump in and chair the Regenerative Twin workshop, which was hosted on the Nature Stage and sponsored by Morgan Sindall Construction.

“There’s a real sense that the need to focus on radical interventions in the built environment to shift from high to low carbon materials and methods is a priority. There’s a genuine desire to shift among big players which is exciting.” Gary Newman, CEO, Woodknowledge Wales

Regenerative Twin project leverages early collaboration for cost-effective Whole Life Carbon reduction

The Morgan Sindall Construction team collaborated with leading businesses across the built environment sector on a groundbreaking digital twinning project, Circular Twin, aimed at transforming design, procurement, and construction practices to deliver low carbon buildings and address the climate emergency.

Circular Twin involved digitally reconstructing an existing school and reworking its design from scratch to prioritise lower carbon outcomes. This innovative project experimented with new working methods, forming an early alliance of experts to reduce the building’s Whole Life Carbon.

The project responded to the climate emergency declared by over 300 UK councils and implemented strategies from the Construction Playbook and UKGBC guidance. It demonstrated how early collaboration among designers, clients, contractors, and the supply chain can significantly reduce Whole Life Carbon with only a modest increase in capital costs. Morgan Sindall Construction led the team, including procurement specialist SCAPE, architects HLM and Lungfish, and engineering consultancy along with procurement specialist  architects HLM and Lungfish and the multi-disciplinary engineering consultancy Cundall, to pool their expertise in sustainable design and construction.

SCAPE, as the client, challenged the team to prioritise carbon reduction over cost in their decision-making process. This shift in focus allowed the team to redefine value beyond traditional cost metrics, leading to long-term operational savings. Compared to the original 2017 school, Circular Twin achieved:

  • 67% reduction in Whole Life Carbon
  • 72% reduction in upfront embodied carbon (48% lifecycle reduction)
  • 52% reduction in annual energy consumption
  • 39% reduction in forest consumption for products and 30-year UK offset

Circular Twin broke conventional procurement practices, proving the substantial benefits of innovative collaboration and providing a credible template for a new approach to sustainable construction.

Hear more about the Regenerative Twin project

Tim Clement will be speaking on the Circular Twin at a workshop at during Day 1 of the upcoming WoodBUILD 2024 conference, to be held in Swansea on 2-3 July 2024:

From circular towards regenerative construction: Morgan Sindall’s Regenerative Twin project set out to drive change across the construction supply chain from a major contractor’s position. By bringing together a team from a broad range of disciplines within the supply chain the project explored the use and complexities of regenerative materials and their impact on carbon, biodiversity, social justice and capex. This workshop elevates learnings from the project and looks at how we can work towards regenerative construction through our own projects and collaborations.

Tasty takeaways from a day demystifying building standards 

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Lessons from the 1st joint CoP meeting bringing together
Architects & Designers and Social Housing Developers

Compilation image by The AECB

On 25 April 2024, more than 60 people attended our first joint Communities of Practice (CoP) meeting, which took place in at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UWTSD) in Swansea, with more than 25 people joining online. Audience takeaways and presentations now available below.

The hybrid event brought together Social Housing Developers and Architects and Designers to learn about AECB CarbonLite and EPC A standards, form factor (a measure of how compact a building is), and how to identify common issues and quality in terms of achieving these building standards in practice. 

“Our very own Andrew Simmonds and Tim Martel went along to a brilliant Woodknowledge Wales event last week – they enjoyed an array of interesting presentations and discussions and came back buoyed and enthusiastic and we are very keen to explore areas of collaboration.” The AECB 

How to bake your construction cake

Just one of the tasty takeaways (pun intended) for participants was the analogy between building and baking. If you missed the event, please do enjoy the presentations and other audience takeaways listed below. 

PV, batteries and other tech can be the icing on the cake but first we must bake the cake in the form of good building fabric

Alun Watkins, Director, Kalm Consultancy Services

“The power and knowledge of having the two groups face to face in the room and being able to share real-life experience in an open and transparent setting – between those who are working with these standards and those that are aware but not applying them in their practice – made this event so strong.” Rachel Cook, Head of Networks and Communities of Practice (CoP) manager, Woodknowledge Wales 

AECB CarbonLite and EPC A standards demystified

Expert practitioners, Alun Watkins from Kalm Consultancy and Jaime Moya from Spring Design laid out the differences between AECB (Association for Environment Conscious Building) CarbonLite and EPC A (energy performance certificate) standards. The presenters demystified these using real-life project examples to illustrate how to quantify affordable warmth and decarbonisation. They talked about form factor, shading and orientation and how these factors map onto AECB CarbonLite standards in more detail. 

“Looking at form factor, which is still not a core concept for all architects to consider in their designs, and getting the technical breakdown of how this looks in real life by comparing two actual project examples, was really useful for both client side and designers.” Diana Waldron, Head of Built Environment and co-lead Architects & Designers CoP, Woodknowledge Wales. 

“Encompassing real-life examples of properties illustrating in a hands-on way what social housing providers should consider and why, when building new or retrofitting existing housing stock to EPC A and AECB CarbonLite standards. This event underlined the importance of having conversations early in the process with architects and designers and how to engage residents around the impact and functionality of their low-energy, high-performance homes.” David Hedges, Head of Housing and co-lead Social Housing Developers CoP, Woodknowledge Wales. 

Getting hands-on with CWIC’s PODs

Rob Thomas from Hiraeth Architects delivered an on-site presentation explaining the benefits and purpose of the UWTSD CWIC (Construction Wales Innovation Centre) PODs. These hands-on educational PODs are used to demonstrate methods for identifying the common factors and quality issues which present barriers to achieving the AECB CarbonLite  and EPC A building standards. Deliberately designed with faults, the PODs highlight site-relevant issues such as thermal bridging, incorrect instalment of insulation, and vapour barriers. They have been built to two different standards so comparisons can be made between building regulation specifications and higher, near-Passivhaus, standards.  

“Seeing what a big difference something that looks fairly insignificant is making in practice when measured – like a piece of insulation being a few centimetres out – was eye-opening for both architects and social housing developers.” Diana Waldron 

Audience feedback and takeaways 

  • Welsh Development Quality Requirements 2021 (WDQR 2021) or social housing call for EPC A or equivalent standards. These include Passivhaus and AECB CarbonLite, but additional consultancy is required and often not engaged. In practice, this means that AECB CarbonLite may not always be applied in practice, leaving some projects fully focused on EPC A ratings. Participants found it interesting to learn more about AECB CarbonLite standards and their inclusion of quality assurance and certification.  
  • Some issues presented are being raised and addressed by some organisations, but many still aren’t. There is still work to be done!
Image: Caroline Summers, Melin Homes, social post

Participants also expressed an interest in learning more about: 

  • form factor (a measure of how compact a building is). 
  • the need to embed Planning Policy Wales (PPW) energy hierarchy for planning in practice – planning departments often still create barriers to the achievement of more sustainable outcomes. 
  • the potential to use CWIC’s Pods as learning tools to demonstrate the practical processes behind BPE (building performance evaluation) testing with architect’s offices or clients 

This event clearly responded to members’ needs for forging relationships on personal and professional levels. Rumour has it that a significant number of participants continued their conversations into the evening hours in a pub nearby.

Enjoy your own slice of the cake

If you want to delve deeper into any of these topics, let us know and we will organise follow-on workshops. Contact: rachel.cook@woodknowledgewales.co.uk

If you missed this event, get hands-on with CWIC’s PODs and catch the Building Standards focused workshop at WoodBUILD 2024: Navigating the jungle of competing building standards

Book your Early Bird ticket until 31 May 2024.

More tasty takeaways

Download presentations 

Building Performance PODS
by Rob Thomas, Hiraeth  ArchitectsDownload
Quantifying Affordable Warmth & Decarbonisation by Jaime Moya, Spring DesignsDownload
Importance of Form Factor by Alun Watkins,
Kalm Consultancy Services Download

Hear Built by Nature’s Paul King speak at WoodBUILD 2024

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Woodknowledge Wales is delighted to announce that Paul King, Chief Executive Officer, of Built by Nature, will provide the keynote address on day two of WoodBUILD 2024, on 3 July, at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David IQ Waterfront campus in Swansea.

“We are absolutely thrilled that Paul King will provide the keynote address on day two of WoodBUILD 2024 and take part in a centrepiece debate. Paul will provide a European vision on how the built environment can work in unison with nature. Following his presentation, Paul has agreed to participate in a curated debate, alongside other key timber industry experts, that will focus on the practicalities of delivering on the challenge laid down by Prof. Hans Joachim (John) Schellnhuberat last year’s conference (see his presentation here for those that missed it), on how the industry can substantially increase the use of timber and other biogenic materials in the built environment to act as a carbon store and become a highly significant climate change mitigation solution.”

Gary Newman, CEO, Woodknowledge Wales

Built by Nature is a network and grant-making fund dedicated to accelerating the timber building transformation in Europe. Set up by the philanthropic Laudes Foundation, Built by Nature has head offices in Amsterdam. Supporting developers, designers, investors, asset owners and insurers, alongside policymakers and city leaders, the organisation aims to help the building sector radically reduce embodied carbon, safely store carbon in our buildings for generations, and sequester carbon by championing forest stewardship and regeneration.

About Paul King

Paul King joined Built by Nature as CEO after serving as Managing Director, Sustainability and Social Impact, Lendlease Europe, since February 2015.

Previously he was the founding CEO of the UK Green Building Council, May 2007 – January 2015. Before that he worked for WWF-UK as Director of Campaigns, Campaign Director for WWF’s One Million Sustainable Homes campaign and co-founder of One Planet Living.

Paul is a Director of BeOnsite, a not-for-profit organisation that supports people furthest from work into sustained employment, and a Design Council Expert Specialist in the areas of sustainability and net zero carbon. Between February 2017 and February 2023, he was a trustee and Vice Chair of the Board of Centre for London, the city’s only dedicated think tank.

Paul was Chairman of the public/private sector Zero Carbon Hub 2008 – 2016 and a member of the Zero Carbon Homes 2016 Task Force, established by the UK Government to translate the zero carbon homes policy ambition into reality. He was a member of the UK Government’s Green Construction Board and Chair of its Buildings Working Group. He was also a member of the Low Carbon Construction IGT, Sustainable Buildings Task Group, Code for Sustainable Homes Steering Group and the Egan Review of Skills for Sustainable Communities, all commissioned by the UK Government. On an international level, he was a member of the Board of the World Green Building Council and Chair of the WorldGBC Europe Network 2007 – 2014.

Building homes for a sustainable future

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Introducing WoodBUILD 2024 workshop sponsors:

Wales & West Housing

Pentland Close, Cardiff under construction
Source: Wales & West Housing

Woodknowledge Wales is please to announce that Wales & West Housing is sponsoring WoodBUILD 2024. Sponsor representatives attending the event will include Jo Curson, Director of Development and Marcus Blayney, Planning, Strategy and Improvement Manager.

Jo Curson, Director of Development,
Wales & West Housing
Marcus Blayney, Planning, Strategy and Improvement Manager,
Wales & West Housing

As workshop sponsors, Wales & West Housing will join other sponsors and exhibitors in presenting an elevator pitch during the first plenary session. In the meantime, we asked Jo to give us a quick overview of the organisation.

Taking the climate emergency seriously

At Wales & West Housing, we take the climate emergency seriously and have a robust environmental strategy that demonstrates our commitment to a more sustainable future and achieve ‘net-zero’ by 2050. We are taking action to increase our sustainability and reduce our carbon footprint across the homes we build and manage. One of our priorities is building low-carbon homes using timber-frames and support the Welsh timber industry. We also focus on enhancing the natural environment and biodiversity when we build new homes.

Blue Dragon, Newport Road, Cardiff
Source: Wales & West Housing

Wales & West Housing is a large registered social landlord that provides homes and services to more than 20,000 people across Wales. We own and manage almost 12,400 homes for affordable rent and have a long history of building new affordable homes to help solve the housing crisis. As a responsible business, we take the climate crisis seriously and have a robust environmental strategy that demonstrates our commitment to a more sustainable future and how we will achieve ‘net-zero’ by 2050.

Working with the Carbon Trust, we have calculated our carbon footprint across our homes, our offices and vehicle fleet and have a roadmap to help us achieve a more sustainable future.

Building low carbon homes

Drone shot of the Maes Yr Hufenfa development in Carmarthenshire
Source: Wales & West Housing

One of our priorities, and that of Welsh Government, is building homes that are low carbon in operation.

For a number of years, we have been creating new homes that don’t rely on fossil fuels. These are all built to an EPC A rating, moving away from gas with increased emphasis on renewable technologies for the production and storage of electricity. Building homes that are more energy efficient means they are warmer and lead to reduced energy bills for residents, as well as reducing carbon consumption.

Ffordd Yr Haearn, Grangetown, Cardiff
Source: Wales & West Housing

We have increased the use of timber in the construction of our new housing. Timber is the most sustainable, carbon neutral material available and one that lends itself to more sustainable offsite manufacture. It also locks in carbon through its growth and can be re-used or recycled with minimal carbon impact, unlike other materials. By collaborating with Welsh companies, we are playing a part in supporting the homegrown timber industry.

Features that enhance the natural environment and biodiversity to attract and protect wildlife are also important when we build new homes. On many of our developments, especially those in rural areas, we manage and maintain hedgerows, provide places for bats to roost and birds to nest, create areas for protected species, highways for hedgehogs and plant areas with wildflowers to attract insects.

Priory Street, Carmarthen: an artist’s rendering
Source: Wales & West Housing

Our new developments are also designed to manage rainwater in ways that copy nature by creating natural sustainable drainage systems, which also improve biodiversity. These areas are developed to be rich in flora and fauna, featuring swales and basins to hold water during wet weather or ponds and wetland areas planted to encourage wildlife habitats and biodiversity.

By demonstrating our commitment to a more sustainable future through our developments we hope to encourage others to work with us to achieve our collective goal.

Catch up with Jo Curson and Marcus Blayney, and find out how you can assist in co-creating a resilient timber value chain find out more and register for WoodBUILD 2024 now.

Home-Grown Homes Update

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April 2024

This update has been prepared by David Hedges, our Head of Housing and the Home-Grown Homes project manager.

Read previous Project Updates:

Home-Grown Homes Phase Two reaches the halfway mark

Phase Two of the Project is now halfway through its two-year term. We’re continuing to finalise case study reports on the work of our sawmills, processors and clients. These will be available on our website and used to illustrate the forthcoming consultation on Wales’ first Timber Industrial Strategy. One of these case studies focusses on a number of small sawmills which have benefitted from the collective purchase of high-quality Douglas fir sawlogs from the Welsh Government Woodland Estate at Coed y Brenin near Dolgellau. For more information contact John Sweeny.

We’re completing a report on the development of our Small Sawmillers Community of Practice (CoP) which has been going from strength to strength. The CoP has grown out of our work supporting small sawmills to access a regular supply of sawlogs and has included a series of networking events and visits. For more information on the CoP contact John Sweeny.

Reporting environmental impact

We’ve made good progress on the development of tools for helping measure and report environmental impact. We’re working with the Good Homes Alliance and Alliance for Sustainable Building Products on projects to create easy to use tools to help clients to make better choices and to lower the embodied carbon of construction projects. As part of this, we’re working with a sawmill and a manufacturer on how to report the impact of their work. We’ll have versions available over the next few months to test, so we can get feedback from users and refine the tools. For more information contact Diana Waldron.

Building performance evaluation

The warmer weather heralds the end of the ‘heating season’ but the last few weeks have allowed us to carry out a series of Building Performance Evaluation tests with client members in Cardiff, Newtown and Aberavon – with the help of Barcud, Mid Wales Properties, Cardiff Council, Wates, @Home, Tai Tarian and Hale Construction. We’ve been measuring a number of different properties to assess fabric performance and mechanical and ventilation systems ahead of their occupation. The thermal performance and air leakage tests will help to identify whether the finished properties are achieving the energy performance they have been designed to achieve. The analysis of the test results will take place over the next few weeks. For more information contact Diana Waldron.

Understanding home-grown timber and forestry education

We’re refining the research we’ve been doing on understanding the performance of home-grown timber in timber frame manufacturing. It has highlighted the challenges and opportunities and considers the relationship between forest management, processing and the supply of stable structural timber. For more information contact James Moxey.

We’ve completed our final report on the state of skills, education and training in the forestry and advanced timber manufacturing sectors. And our work moves on at pace with the mapping of the education networks across Wales. We’re holding stakeholder discussions on Personal Learning Accounts and short courses for both sectors and we’re planning an online event as well as a session at WoodBUILD linked to the challenge of recruiting young people. For more information contact James Moxey.

Stakeholder mapping and engagement

We’ve completed a stakeholder mapping exercise. It’s an overview of the stakeholders involved in the timber industry in Wales and consolidates knowledge from across our team of experts. Understanding stakeholder profiles, preferences and operational contexts helps foster meaningful engagement across the timber supply chain. By embracing innovation, sustainability, and stakeholder-centric approaches, the timber industry in Wales can capitalise on emerging opportunities, drive economic growth and contribute to environmental stewardship and societal well-being. For more information contact Sarah Lawton.

WoodBUILD24 is now in Swansea this July and registration is open. Sponsors and exhibitors are being signed up. Interested parties are invited to download the Sponsor and Exhibitor pack.

For sponsorship enquiries, please contact Sarah Lawton. For exhibitor enquiries, please contact Rachel Cook.

Building performance evaluation by Woodknowledge Wales

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Woodknowledge Wales kicks off its building performance evaluation service at various social housing schemes around Wales

U-value calculations using thermography-based assessment: Heat3D

Starting on Friday 1 March, Dr Diana Waldron, Head of Built in Environment, and Clara Koehler, Embodied Carbon Lead, carried out various on-site building performance evaluation (BPE) on behalf of Woodknowledge Wales. This work was undertaken in collaboration with Build Test Solutions (BTS) and SOAP Retrofit. The sites under assessment are social housing schemes of various building typologies.

Dr Diana Waldron, Head of Built in Environment

This work aims to develop strategies to tackle the ‘Performance Gap’. New homes often fail to meet low-energy targets, and to satisfy residents’ fundamental needs such as ease of use, summer comfort and energy costs. Woodknowledge Wales recommends a ‘core’ BPE scope for clients and project teams wanting to understand and improve the performance of their homes. This provides a holistic look at performance, including people, the indoor environment, fabric performance and energy use.

This approach limits the involvement of expensive equipment. Instead, the aim is to embed building performance throughout the project stages and empower project teams to deliver high performance.

All BPE equipment used by our team was supplied by Construction Wales Innovation Centre (CWIC) at the University of Trinity Saint David (UWTSD).

How to carry out U-values calculations on two different walls simultaneously.
Above and Right: How to carry out U-value calculations on two different
walls simultaneously.
U-value measurement of an external wall using Heat3D.

A U-value, or thermal transmittance, measures heat transfer from inside to outside through a building element. It’s expressed in W/m²K. Infrared imagery helps locate suitable points for measuring U-values, typically areas with uniform temperatures away from thermal bridging zones. Therefore, these assessments used two methods to measure the U-values of various building elements: Heat3D and Heat flux plates/sensors.

Using Heat flux sensors to measure heat flux proves valuable as these readings indicate whether an object’s temperature will increase, decrease, or remain constant. They also provide insights into the reasons behind and the rate of temperature changes.

Surveying an external wall using thermography.
Assessing COP (coefficient of performance) of installed MVHR unit, to test appropriate ventilation levels.
Measuring ventilation levels at
inlet and outlet points of the mechanical ventilation system.
Above and right: Blower Door Test.
Above and below right: Pulse Test

Pulse tests assess building leakage from 2-15 Pa with dynamic high-frequency data logging over a brief 6-15 second test. Results at 4Pa are provided and extrapolated to 50Pa equivalents. Pulse tests confirm if replacement windows or doors have made your property more airtight. Pulse tests can be conducted pre- and post-installation.

Uptake of this new service has been excellent. Woodknowledge Wales undertook building performance evaluation in four different sites in different parts of Wales this month alone. We are starting to plan future sites for the next heating season.

If you would like to book Woodknowledge Wales team of experts to carry out a building performance evaluation on your site, please contact: diana.waldron@woodknowledgewales.co.uk

For further information on building performance, please read our Building Performance Evaluation Guide.

This guidance is aimed at housing clients, and anyone interested in Building Performance Evaluation (BPE)  who want to evaluate and improve the performance of homes.

Representatives of the Woodknowledge Wales team ( From left to right: Gary Newman, David Hedges, Dr Diana Waldron, Ceri Loxton)