InstaGroup has been supplying and installing external wall insulation and replacement windows for homes in Ealing, Greater London through the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF), the company said on 16 January 20251. The 44 properties were constructed in the 1930s and 1940s2.
The work was carried out with United Living, which chose InstaGroup for supply and installation2. The project team also included ECD Architects2. The client set what the case study describes as a challenging target: to install all 44 homes to Energiesprong standards2. Meeting that standard required 280mm of insulation on the walls and 250mm below the damp proof course (DPC)2. InstaGroup installed its InstaClad external wall insulation system on the walls and Stomix StxTherm Robust below the DPC2. In total, the project amounted to around 4,000m2 of installation2.
"A challenging target was set by the client: to install all 44 homes to Energiesprong standards."
Site supervisors on the project are also Retrofit Co-Ordinators, and InstaGroup says its supervisors can ensure install teams meet the required standards and adhere to PAS 32035 requirements throughout the SHDF project2. Weekly design meetings were held on site, with wider team catch-ups every two weeks2.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Homes | 44 |
| Construction date | 1930s and 1940s |
| Wall insulation thickness | 280mm |
| Insulation below DPC | 250mm |
| Total installation | Around 4,000m2 |
| Wall system | InstaClad |
| Below-DPC product | Stomix StxTherm Robust |
Why it matters for households
The Ealing project is an example of how solid wall insulation is delivered at scale in social housing, where tenants usually have no say over the fabric of the building and no capital outlay. Insulation of this kind reduces the heat a home loses through its walls, which is the practical basis of energy independence for a household: less energy bought to hold a steady indoor temperature. The thicknesses used here, 280mm on the walls and 250mm below the DPC, are described as unusual and bespoke, and were driven by the Energiesprong target rather than by a standard specification2. The case study states that retrofitting reduces energy bills and keeps homes warmer for residents, and that every UK home insulated will use less energy on heating, reducing carbon emissions2. It does not give measured before-and-after energy use, bill savings or an EPC rating for the Ealing homes, and none of those figures has been reported.
For households outside projects of this kind, the funding route matters as much as the measure. The SHDF is one route; separate grant schemes operate in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Where a household is paying for work itself, checking an installer's credentials and the standards a system is certified to is the counterpart to the PAS 32035 compliance referenced on this project, and is covered in finding an insulation installer.
What happens next
The case study describes tight timescales in Ealing and says the team wanted the project delivered to high standards within the time allowed, but it does not give a completion date2. No completion date for the Ealing project has been reported.