Retrofit West: pioneering local retrofit delivery
Retrofit West is a Community Interest Company (CIC) set up by the Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE) to tackle a critical gap in the West of England’s journey to net zero. This gap was the lack of a trusted, coordinated approach to help households retrofit their homes.
Since launching in 2023, it’s become one of the UK’s few successful examples of a local one-stop-shop for retrofit – connecting homeowners with independent advice and vetted installers while building a thriving local supply chain.
Why we created Retrofit West
Retrofit West grew from years of CSE research and practical experience demonstrating both the scale of opportunity and the barriers to delivery in the region.
In 2018, we delivered a study for the West of England Combined Authority which resulted in our report, Towards a Sustainable Energy Future for the West of England. At the same time, we were developing our own Futureproof service to support self-funded households locally with trusted independent advice on improving the energy efficiency, warmth and comfort of their homes.
In 2019, our work on the Bristol Net Zero by 2030 evidence report for Bristol City Council demonstrated that there was a potential market worth over £2bn from housing retrofit across Bristol alone.
But identifying the opportunity wasn’t enough.
Between 2021 and 2022, we hosted a series of workshops bringing regional stakeholders together to explore the local retrofit market opportunity further. The key finding emerging from these discussions was clear – the West of England needed a new entity to coordinate and support local retrofit delivery. With funding from the West of England Combined Authority, CSE took a lead in making this happen.
What makes it work
Retrofit West was registered as a CIC in January 2023, with CSE named as the asset lock body. This structure gives it commercial flexibility while ensuring community benefit remains central to everything it does. Any surplus must be reinvested in the West of England community – whether that’s supporting fuel-poor households, training local installers, or inspiring young people into retrofit careers.
The model brings together public, private and third sector partners under one brand. Multiple organisations – including CSE’s Futureproof service – deliver advice and surveys under the Retrofit West brand, creating a coordinated regional offer. CSE provides the expertise and back-office support that allows Retrofit West to focus purely on delivery
The results
In its first two years of operation Retrofit West has:
- Supported thousands of households across the West of England to receive retrofit advice through the website, telephone support service and subsidised home retrofit surveys.
- Contributed to the growth in the local retrofit market with 120+ businesses active on the Retrofit West hub.
- Achieved a 75% progression rate from survey to installation, with 25% of homeowners completing their retrofit work, 32% with installations underway, and 18% awaiting quotes or installation dates
An independent evaluation commissioned by WECA and reported in August 2025 found that businesses on the Retrofit West Hub reported a 43% increase in enquiries for their services and 31% increase in completed retrofit jobs.
A model for others
Retrofit West demonstrates what’s possible when you combine trusted advice, local coordination and partnership working. It’s one of the only demonstrable examples in the UK of a public, private and third sector partnership delivering a local one-stop-shop for households and businesses wanting to deliver housing retrofit. Other regions across the UK can learn from and build on our experience as they scale up retrofit delivery.