A new development in Pontardawe supported by the Innovative Housing Programme will blaze a trail for low carbon construction and zero carbon operation. Andy Sutton explains.
Parc Hadau: an overview
At the end of 2019, the green light was secured for one of the world’s first true ‘net zero’ carbon neighbourhoods, ‘Parc Hadau’. Located in Pontardawe, within Neath Port Talbot, preparations are now well underway for the development, which will comprise 35 cutting edge homes that enable sustainable and affordable lifestyles for residents, and it promises a world first in the form of the demonstrable zero carbon operation of the homes.
The site, currently a disused piece of scrubland in a former mining community, will be transformed into an integrated extension of the existing community, whose residents will enjoy high-quality, sustainable housing, normally with no energy bills.
The project at a glance
- £8 million development, supported by more than £2 million from the Welsh Government’s Innovative Housing Programme
- 35 zero-carbon new high-quality homes with a community building and gardens
- Long-term European style tenure model as opposed to open market sale
- Cutting-edge low energy design principles for reduced energy consumption, including integrated solar panels and ground source heat pumps
- Electric car charging points and leased electric vehicle packages available for each home
- Landscaping designed to bring together people and nature, including a large communal garden central to the scheme, as well as wetland landscapes and a wildflower meadow
- WRW Construction has been appointed to undertake works, with building scheduled to start in June and the first residents expected to move in in 2021.
Zero carbon design and operation
Parc Hadau will blaze a trail in both low-carbon construction and zero carbon operation. The new homes will use low carbon design approaches to reduce the energy demands of the homes and their residents, whilst the project will also work to reduce carbon emissions from construction materials. These will include cross laminated timber and thermal mass in the ceilings to reduce overheating; important differentiators which aren’t currently mainstream construction approaches and therefore demonstrate important innovation across the spectrum of homebuilding.
These design elements will be combined with a mix of renewable energy technologies, including thermal and electrical storage, significant on-site photovoltaic (solar) panels and ground source heat pumps, together with ventilation systems that keep the warmth inside while ensuring fresh, filtered air.
Intelligent controls within the homes, managed by our sister company Sero Energy, will continuously track carbon emissions from the National Grid to ensure any imported electricity’s emissions are more than balanced by those avoided from electricity generated on the site and exported from the homes.
This real-time live tracking of carbon emissions when the homes are actually running is what makes our scheme a world-first, enabling us to go to the full extent of the UK Green Building Council’s definition of net zero carbon.
This approach accounts for both the homes’ ‘regulated’ energy, as well as residents’ plug-in appliances, meaning Parc Hadau goes significantly beyond the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) A rating, to a point where the underpinning Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) ceases to be able to cope. However, importantly, it means a true recognition of the impact of homes and their occupants on the climate emergency, and meets the UK Green Building Council’s ‘net zero’ definition including the element UKGBC considered only a future aspiration.
Sustainable surroundings and infrastructure
Beyond the development’s low carbon credentials, the scheme pays very careful attention to the preservation of ecological value on the site in the ancient woodland and expands this biological benefit with the creation of a sustainable, natural environment that is fundamental to the site’s ethos.
We’ve worked hard to devise a scheme that prioritises community and environment and not the car. From an ecological standpoint, this means carefully landscaped and preserved communal gardens, and a mix of expertly designed outdoor spaces where residents can come together. The scheme borders ancient woodlands and will also include wetland landscapes and a wildflower meadow. It has been designed by award-winning Welsh architects Loyn & Co, and incorporates landscaping by nationally renowned Farrer Huxley, to ensure seamless integration of nature and wildlife.
From a transport perspective, this means the provision of electric charging points for all homes, and we will make electric vehicles available under competitive lease agreements with mileage allowances included as part of the home rental package.
Protected rents
At the heart of our efforts to use Parc Hadau as an international exemplar for affordable lifestyles is the important decision to pursue a purpose-built rental model for the properties, which will be offered as long-hold tenure. Based on a model more commonly associated with the continent, the homes will be available through index-linked tenures, rather than open market sale.
In doing so, Parc Hadau will address the three pillars of quality, affordability and security for residents, as well as providing peace of mind over the operation and maintenance of the homes.
We hope to carve a positive future for the rental market through showcasing a secure and sustainable model that works for residents in the long-term yet offers a genuinely promising and inviting proposition.
Affordable lifestyles
Rather than simply offering affordable housing, we are aiming to facilitate affordable lifestyles for our residents, and rent is just one piece of this jigsaw.
By offering market level rents, low energy bills and low transport outgoings, Parc Hadau is aiming to take a holistic approach to the creation of affordable lifestyles in entirety. What’s more, we plan to offer first refusal for the homes to local employees; the idea being that if we can secure interest from people who work locally to live at Parc Hadau, then we shorten commutes and reduce travel costs.
Naturally, those who work nearby will then walk or cycle to their places of work – exactly the kind of lifestyle we want the development to be perfectly equipped to facilitate.
Bright futures
We don’t want Parc Hadau to exist in isolation and are in active discussions about new sites which we are looking to get off the ground, elsewhere in Wales and the UK, as quickly as possible. As part of this, we are also pursuing new sustainable investment models to ensure this type of housing innovation can rapidly scale up and become commonplace. Ultimately, homes and communities of this nature must now be considered a right and not a ‘nice to have’ preserved for a lucky few. Traditional housebuilders are having to evolve and we hope this development becomes a cornerstone of best practice.
There will of course be valuable lessons to take on board as we progress. Building will never be a perfect art and the complexity of the homes’ design and the background technology involved will no doubt present challenges along the way. However, we will be taking a proactive role to ensuring site quality and inspections throughout construction, and will work tirelessly to ensure completion in 2021.
About Sero Homes
Founded in Cardiff in 2017, Sero Homes is a new disruptor to the existing house building market. Sero Homes builds zero carbon homes that are quality, well designed, larger than typical new build homes set in places that promote community and ecology, and which favour active travel, car sharing and electric vehicles. The Sero Homes team is led by co founder and managing director James Williams, who has considerable experience in the renewable energy markets and development, with co founder and design and innovation director Andy Sutton, an architect and advisor to Welsh Government with considerable experience in zero carbon development.
Andy Sutton is co-founder and director of design and innovation at Sero Homes