In the first few months after launch The Green Home grants received plenty of flack from consumers who struggled to find installers willing to do the work and many expressed frustration at the bizarre primary and secondary measures .  Long before this many in the Trusmark fold were already expressing concerns. Many are concerned that the Green Home grants is just more of the same as previous schemes: Mass insulation as a single measure with little attention to the 'Whole house' approach recommended by Each home counts review. The PCA were a founding member of Trustmark. Their CEO Steve Hodgson in his 'Hodgson view' blog was blunt. Elmhurst Energy are a Trustmark scheme provider and partnered with Trustmark on PAS2035 described it as a missed opportunity and were critical of step backwards by going back on the recommendations of the Bonfield Review (Each home counts). Stroma a Trustmark scheme provider expressed dissapoinment about abandoning the trajectory already in pl

Lets just take this moment to reflect on this glorious triple phoenix. We now have a situation where   Novora building services (a Pheonix of Miller Pattison with CIGA board representation), using a insulation product developed by Jablite (which went into administration with 12m debt and phoenixed as a new company also called Jablite), listed as an   installer with Insulation Assurance Authority (a rebrand and a possible future phoenix of CIGA). It really speaks volumes of the industry where there is virtually no consequence of dumping creditors one day and coming back with full certification the next day. In fact Novora was given the job of inspecting defective Miller Pattison work on behalf of CIGA.  It's  not clear why there was an urgency before administration for MP to brand their own CWI and get it approved by the BBA but it would make them both installer and system designer of a product . The BBA approved Novora as a system designer with their branded Jablite insulation pr

The hope of Trustmark was that the problems with CWI would go away with the introduction of PAS2030/35 as a result of the Each Home counts review. One of the key strap lines being 'no insulation without ventilation; Trutmark would fulfil the  'quality mark' of government endorsed quality and home owners  can relax - there will be strict oversight for once. The retrofit co-ordinator role was seen as key to bring about a whole house assessment and make impartial recommendations in the best interest of the home owner and it was assumed to be an independent role similar to a building control inspector. Unfortunately, independence is seldom enforced and is not an absolute requirement. CIGA are gearing up to provide their own in-house retrofit co-ordinator to their members. Not only that but said retrofit co-ordinator can 'reduce the inherent technical risk score' of Cavity wall insulation under PAS2035 simply because Trustmark recognise CIGA as an 'industry quali

On April the 1st 2020 a press release, which could easily be dismissed as a joke, announced that Nigel Donogue, CEO of CIGA was launching a new end to end Installation organisation with the strap line 'Right first time'. What made some people think it was a prank was that the only content of subance on the launch web site was a list of CIGA's 'remedition contractors' (see appendix) - companies paid to fix problems with retrofit. Very 'Right first time'! However it turns out to be a real thing and very concerning as this is clearly a restructuring of CIGA to capitalise on an expected retofit boost following adoption of the PAS standards and Trustmark 'quality mark' all of which were a fallout from the Each Home Count review.  It also appears to be an attempt to shake of the toxic brand of CIGA which again was brought up in parliament on May 2020  In case there was any doubt of IAA being a rebrand.  Companies House as of 4 Jun 2020 shows that IA

The British standard BS 8208-1:1985 Guide to assessment of suitability of external cavity walls for filling with thermal insulants. Existing traditional cavity construction . Is a verbose title but describes exactly what you would expect it to do. When BBA certificates were issued for cavity wall insulation products during the late 80s and 90s they would reference conformity to this standard as evidence that a product and installation of said product conformed to building regulations. The standard was withdrawn on 2009 but products approved approved to this standard by the BBA continued to be installed with reference to this standard for many years after. Anyone working in the industry should have been very familiar with this guidance. For the Cosytherm product in my walls, it is quite explicit: Cosytherm whitewhool Agrément certificate Clearly if CIGA or a surveyor check for conformity to 'industry standard' they would have to take into account this standard as