A Fair and Equitable Transition? Tenants’ experiences of decarbonising social housing

There is a policy-wide view that decarbonising housing can alleviate issues associated with high energy costs, fuel poverty, and poor quality housing. However, the transition to low carbon housing is not an easy adjustment to make and can disproportionately affect vulnerable social groups and communities already experiencing inequality and can bring about new injustices. This study explores social housing tenant’s positive and negative experiences of transitioning to low carbon housing in Wales. It considers the ways in which tenants reduce carbon emissions in the home and reasons for so doing. Key questions guiding this research are: how does decarbonised housing advance housing equality, and how does it exacerbate housing inequality? The findings and discussion draws on three focus groups with 23 social housing tenant participants, and one focus group involving 11 policymakers and practitioners.