BEAMA, the trade association for energy infrastructure and systems, published a white paper on 16 February 2022 setting out what it believes should be done to deliver good indoor air quality in UK homes1. The paper, titled Better Ventilation Better Homes Better Health, argues that poor indoor air quality is a growing public health concern responsible for thousands of deaths a year, alongside substantial healthcare and wider economic costs1.
The paper states that as homes become more airtight, through insulation retrofits and new homes built to ever higher levels of energy efficiency, the need for effective ventilation becomes increasingly important1. It says studies have shown ventilation removes indoor pollutants and stops them accumulating, reducing exposure levels and improving cognitive performance1.
BEAMA identifies two issues it says must be tackled: joining up energy efficiency and ventilation improvements, which it summarises as "Ventilate when you Insulate!", and rooting out poor-quality installation of ventilation systems and poor compliance1.
"The proposals in this paper set out what BEAMA believe needs to be done to deliver good indoor air quality in UK homes"
The white paper makes four recommendations to Government1:
| Recommendation |
|---|
| Set higher ventilation standards for newbuild to protect health and wellbeing |
| Ensure energy efficiency retrofits are matched by effective ventilation measures to protect health and wellbeing |
| Drive ventilation compliance standards |
| Treat poor indoor air quality and ventilation as a public health emergency, including public education campaigns and enshrining the issue in all relevant policy areas |
The paper draws on the COVID-19 pandemic, saying it demonstrated the value of healthy indoor environments and their fragility, and that people are asking what the rapid indoor spread of viruses means for pollutants and other harmful substances1.
Why it matters for households
Ventilation sits alongside insulation and glazing in determining how a home performs, and the two can work against each other if airtightness measures are installed without adequate air exchange. For a household, the practical link is between insulation and glazing improvements and the ventilation that removes moisture, pollutants and other accumulations from the indoor environment. BEAMA's position is that these should be treated as one package rather than separate jobs1.
The compliance element bears on how work is carried out in the home. Poor installation quality and poor compliance with ventilation standards are identified by BEAMA as a distinct problem to be rooted out, separate from the question of what the standards themselves require1. BEAMA's recommendations are addressed to Government and no response to them has been reported.
What happens next
The white paper sets out recommendations rather than a timetable, and no dated next steps are given in it1. Whether the Government adopts any of the four proposals has not been reported. Policy responsibility for building standards and energy efficiency sits across departments and devolved administrations, including the department covered in our guide to DESNZ and the Welsh Government's remit set out in energy and buildings policy in Wales.