Pretium Frameworks and Greener Futures Partnership launch new decarbonisation delivery framework

A new framework has been launched to provide retrofit and professional consultancy services to support housing providers with the delivery of decarbonisation works. 

Developed with Contracting Authority Abri, on behalf of the Greener Futures Partnership (GFP), the seven-year framework has been designed to ensure that homes achieve at least an EPC Rating of C by the Government target date of 2030.

GFP was set up by five housing associations — Abri, Anchor, Home Group, Hyde Group and Sanctuary — in 2021, as its members believed that a joint effort would be more effective in helping the social housing sector seriously address the green agenda. Between them they have a combined stock of over 300,000 homes and represent 9% of the total social housing market. GFP partners won all three bids submitted in SHDF Wave 1 with local authorities, securing £5.2m of grant funding for 461 properties, as well as successfully bidding for a further £40.4m, in SHDF wave two through a joint consortium bid including all five partners.

Rose Bean, Director of Assets and Sustainability at Abri and Chair of the GFP Executive Committee said: “The aim of the framework was to create a sector-leading route to market with a truly collaborative approach, where all parties contributed and continually developed best practice.

“Through sharing resources and collaborative procurement, not only was GFP able to save money, remove duplication and speed up delivery, but it was also able to consider a wide range of ideas from five diverse organisations, which wouldn’t have happened if its members had worked in isolation.

“The end result is a truly sustainable framework, which as well as delivering projects through Wave 2 funding, will allow users and contractors to build and maintain relationships to deliver decarbonisation for the long term, keeping pace with innovation in the sector.”

The multi-lot, multi-supplier framework, covers England and Wales, with a separate parallel framework for Scotland due to launch next month. It has been designed with flexibility in mind to enable organisations large and small to deliver a full range of retrofit works through a one-stop shop solution.

The procurement process was collaborative from start to finish, with all partners involved at every stage, alongside resident engagement from all member organisations, and documentation was co-produced with Echelon Consultancy, which procured the framework.

Jessica John, Director of Framework Partnerships at Pretium Frameworks, said: “We’re delighted to be launching this much-needed new framework for the delivery of decarbonisation works and services, which provides the perfect vehicle for supporting the housing sector to tackle the sustainability challenge and meet Government targets.

“We will be hitting the ground running, with an immediate pipeline of work, following Sanctuary’s successful SHDF Wave 2 bid, as the lead member for GFP, which secured a £40.4m grant funding contribution towards the £90m Wave 2 programme.

“We’re also in discussions with several organisations who haven’t yet spent their wave one SHDF funding, as they’ve been unable to find a suitable route to market, to deliver the work types.”

The framework is split into three workstreams, two delivering construction works across different value bands and one delivering professional services, covering all roles specified under PAS 2035.

The workstreams are further broken down into regional Lots, as follows:

The framework is open to any social housing provider in the United Kingdom, any other Contracting Authority in the UK as defined in the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 and any entity within the same group of companies as a GFP member.

For more information on accessing the framework email gfp@pretium.co.uk.