Learnings

Outcomes

There are no project outcomes to share other than the detailed lessons learned which are captured in Section 6.   

Lessons Learnt

The decision was made to close the project due to the multiple challenges encountered. However, valuable lessons learnt have been captured and are documented below. These lessons learnt should help to inform future projects undertaking similar activities.  
 
An early examination of the project partner resources and skill sets needed to deliver the project in a timely manner and to a high standard may have identified some of the issues that came to light due to the initial challenges and the need to re-design the project. 
 
Early and detailed development of project plans and budgets: the social housing provider should have had a greater leading role in the development of the project from the outset, allowing them to determine a level of risk that they could be comfortable with and motivating them to commit at an earlier stage.  
 
The greatest burden of time and human resource lays within the tenant engagement and social research objectives of the project. Such projects should be planned in conjunction with an entity with expertise in community engagement activities, from the start of the project development.  
 
The pace of engagement did not allow for full and open communication with tenants and risked poor levels of engagement; as well as potentially increased anxiety within the social housing resident’s community and increased impact on the landlords’ resources (e.g. increased complaints). Future projects would need to carefully manage the expectations of tenants through careful communication and a period of informative engagement. An experienced social housing partner would be required to facilitate this. 
 
The nature of the Project presented a risk of inadvertently increasing energy bills for tenants; potentially nudging already vulnerable tenants closer to fuel poverty. Future projects should reserve a contingency against increased energy bills. 
 
The initial use of a small, developing hybrid heat pump manufacturer without a robust after-sales support system highlighted the essential need for a reliable network of qualified and experienced engineers, able to respond promptly to the repair and maintenance needs of the end users. Future projects should ensure that technology providers can offer the required support to those trialling their devices.