Dyson Energy Services is proud to be working in partnership with Magna Housing in delivering a loft insulation programme of works, managed by our Southampton regional team, rolling out energy savings to residents.

We invited Alex, Asset Officer at Magna Housing, to talk about Magna’s retrofit plans and the partnership that has been nurtured over several years with Dyson.

Q: Tell us about Magna Housing

Magna Housing is a community-based housing association that largely operates across Dorset and Somerset. We own and manage just under 10,000 homes.

Q: Tell us a little about yourself and your role at Magna Housing

I’m a 23-year-old Geography with Politics graduate who joined Magna at the end of August 2022. My official job title at Magna is Asset Officer for the Building Safety and Compliance team. This largely comprises of data aggregation, managing programmes of work, and delivering objectives arising from Fire Risk Assessments.

However, my day-to-day is much more transformative, as I typically collaborate with those across all departments within the business. I first became involved with the energy side of the business from an early stage, helping cleanse data as part of the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF) Wave 2 bid. Since then, I’ve enjoyed touching base with it as much as I can. Whilst it falls outside of my own department, it closely aligns with my personal and professional interests; therefore, I’m always happy to help when needed!

Q: Why is improving the energy efficiency of homes important to Magna Housing?

It’s really important to make our homes as energy efficient as possible on various levels. As a business, we need to contribute towards our own and the UK’s carbon reduction targets to get us to Net Zero and reduce the impact we’re having on the planet. And for our customers – the people who live in our homes and use our customers – a more energy-efficient home should mean a warmer home, a healthier home (tackling issues like damp and mould), and a more affordable home, by reducing their bills. Our exciting development work is focusing on building energy-efficient new homes using modern methods of construction (MMC) but we’re just as committed to investing properly in our existing homes to bring them up to the right standard.

Q: Can you tell us about the current retrofit project that Dyson Energy Services are delivering on your behalf?

Dyson is currently delivering our loft insulation programme. This consists of a 100+ property quota that is consistently added to as our surveyors visit homes.

Q: In what ways will this retrofit project benefit your residents?

This retrofit project greatly benefits our customers. Topping-up loft insulation ensures a swift solution to combatting energy loss. Through its straightforward application, it can be applied to all customers across our housing stock, keeping them warm in the winter and cool in the summer.

Q: What’s your experience with working in partnership with Dyson Energy Services?

Dyson Energy Services has been a pleasure to work with. Their consistent and transparent communication has allowed us to manage a stress-free contract year after year. They have consistently produced fantastic results yet are always swift to identify and resolve any issues along the way. I know our customers echo this sentiment.

Q: What does the future hold for rolling out further energy efficiency improvements across your housing stock?

Magna has been awarded funding in the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund Wave 2 and will use this funding to embark on 87 pilot retrofits to get us near the Zero Carbon target. This project will help inform our longer-term programme of bringing all our stock up to Net Zero.

Jeanette Carter, Project Manager at Dyson Energy Services, shared:

“The team at Magna Housing is always very proactive and supportive, in assisting in the delivery of this retrofit project and helping it to realise its full potential.”