Energy efficiency, zero emissions and low carbon heating systems, microgeneration and heat networks for homes - skills requirements: consultation

1. Overview

Our draft Heat in Buildings Strategy sets out our vision for decarbonising heat And reducing energy demand across all buildings in Scotland, setting out the scale of the investment opportunity And supporting our green recovery from the COVID-19 pAndemic. This vision can only be achieved if there is a robust supply chain in place with the necessary skills to deliver.

Developing Scottish specific skills requirements for energy efficiency, zero emissions And low carbon heating systems, microgeneration And heat networks is important as the current skills lAndscape can be fragmented, open to interpretation And is often provided by non-accredited training providers. Furthermore, the development of Scottish skills requirements will help both professionalise services in the sector And provide career pathways, particularly for young people which will be vital to the sector's future.

This consultation sets out our proposals for energy efficiency, zero emissions And low carbon heating systems, microgeneration And heat network skills requirements. Whilst the primary focus is on retrofit work for homes, we believe some of these skill requirements will also be relevant for new-build housing And in certain circumstances non-domestic buildings These requirements relate to retrofit installers, energy assessors, designers, advisors, evaluators And retrofit coordinators. Once implemented, these skills requirements will create a best practice standard for the sector, And will be a minimum requirement for Scottish Government-supported programmes. This consultation is seeking views on both the proposals And their implementation.

Definitions

Energy efficiency skills in the context of this consultation relate to the requirements for the retrofit of homes as defined in the British StAndards Institution (BSI) Publically Available Specification (PAS) 2035/30 including: assessment of dwellings for retrofit, identification And evaluation of improvement options (specifically energy efficiency measures (EEMs) which are also defined in the PAS)), design And specification of EEMs And monitoring And evaluation of retrofit projects.

For the purposes of this consultation, microgeneration refers to micro-renewable technologies used for zero/low carbon generation of heat (up to 45kW) and electricity (up to 50kW).For anything heat related beyond the microgeneration definition then this will be referred to as zero emissions and low carbon heating systems^[1] with the exception of heat networks which is defined as infrastructure consisting of insulated pipes And low or zero carbon heat generation which supplies heat (in the form of hot water or steam) to homes And other buildings.