The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has welcomed the Zero Carbon Hub taskforce’s report setting out its recommendations for carbon compliance levels for new homes from 2016.

The recommendations outlined how to make the next steps in achieving zero carbon as effective as possible, whilst being compatible with delivery of the full range of housing required. Some of the key recommendations included:

• Separate compliance limits recommended for detached houses
• Ensuring that the potential gap between “as designed” and “as built” standards is closed
• Providing an option for carbon compliance to be assessed across the whole of a development site, instead of the individual dwellings on the site

Alan Shingler, Head of the RIBA’s Sustainable Futures Group said:

“The work of the Zero Carbon Hub has been essential to setting deliverable Zero Carbon standards. This is a complex issue which is imperative to get right, yet not easy to resolve. By collaborating with partner organisations, it is possible to begin to define shared objectives, and subsequently set clear and achievable targets. To do this successfully, expert technical research is needed to help define these standards. The Sustainable Futures Group and RIBA members have been actively involved in the taskforce and technical committee, and look forward to continuing our work with them.”