External insulation causing 'irreversible' damage to housing stock, experts warn

摘要

Architects and conservationists have warned of the risk of'largely irreversible' visual damage to Victorian and Edwardian homes from the government's huge programme of external insulation. The Department for Energy and Climate Change said last week that 54,000 UK homes had been fitted with eternal wall insulation (EWI) since the beginning of last year under the Energy Company Obligation scheme. Funded by power firms, the scheme delivers insulation programmes and other measures to improve energy efficiency, with EWI most commonly applied to solid-wall homes with no space for additional interior insulation. Unlisted Edwardian and Victorian homes in less affluent areas are seen as being at the greatest risk of aesthetic harm, and critics of the procedure say many councils lack a co-ordinated approach to assessing planning applications for the work.