Kortrijk (BE)
Empower citizens in collective renovations
The neighbour premium in Flanders started in October 2017: a premium for facilitators who collectively supervise the renovation of a number of homes (at least 10 in one municipality) to make them energy efficient. The facilitator supports the citizen in making energy-saving investments and thereby takes over as many tasks from the citizen as possible, such as the energy screening of the home, the timing, advice on energy renovation and plan of action, he helps searching contractors, provides follow-up of the works, administrative support regarding premium applications and financing ...
Within Empower 2.0, Leidedal wants to support the roll-out of the neighbourhood premium via the “Renovation Coach” service of Leiedal (www.warmerwonen.be), and by extension also encourage other collective renovation projects. The Buurkracht project in the Netherlands is a source of inspiration for this.
Leiedal builds on the broad partnership of WarmerWonen, but it also seeks to connect with other actors and neighbourhood-oriented initiatives. It is looking for ways like communication tools, climate caravan ... to be present in the neighbourhood in a visible and accessible way and at the same time approachable / deployable.
In certain neighbourhoods it initially increases increase the number of home visits and reports to convince the residents to carry out (collective) energy renovations.
Today Leiedal mainly sees opportunities in the following three areas:
- In addition to renovation programs in social rental housing: as an offer for social housing in the same neighbourhood. The municipality of Wevelgem is currently running a first test case, in collaboration with the social housing company De Vlashaard.
- Apartments in co-ownership must meet stricter energy standards by 2020 in order to be let. This is a rewarding approach to putting energy renovation in this group on the agenda.
- Neighbourhood-oriented premiums such as in the city of Harelbeke: explicit announcement of the Renovation Coach, presence in the neighborhood with the climate caravan ... in function of stimulating a collective renovation project.