Renewable Asset Maintenance to Retrofit Delivery for Curo

Since 2019, Sureserve Energy Services (SES) has delivered the servicing, repairs and maintenance of solar photovoltaic (PV) and feed-in tariff, heat pump and Mechanical Ventilation Heat Recovery (MVHR) systems for Curo Group across the South West. The work began with solar PV servicing and maintenance, meter swap outs and management of Curo’s feed-in tariff through SES’s in-house administration team, keeping the client’s revenue generation online, alongside looking after the solar PV on Curo’s head offices. Strong performance saw the scope extend into heat pump maintenance, where SES also improved the accuracy of Curo’s asset information, and then into MVHR servicing and maintenance from 2023. Delivered by a small team of full-time, directly employed engineers, SES is now responsible for renewable assets in over 800 homes across Curo’s housing stock.

Growing the Relationship into Retrofit

In September 2022, SES was appointed to deliver Curo’s first ever retrofit project, a £3.2m scheme funded by Wave 2 of the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF) and awarded as a one-off project under the West of England Combined Authority (WECA). Running until March 2025, the project covered 115 off-gas rural bungalows and semi-detached homes across South Bristol and Bath, all delivered to Publicly Available Specification (PAS) 2035 standards. A full fabric first approach was taken to maximise thermal efficiency. Heating surveys determined the correct sizing of Quantum systems, and temporary heating kept residents comfortable while works were underway. Where failed cavities were found, the insulation was fully extracted, cleared of rubble and refilled with ThermaBead. Nominated subcontractor Anglian designed, surveyed and installed composite doors and high energy efficiency windows, while SES’s trusted subcontractors carried out structural roof strengthening, full roof replacements to Redland specification using new tiles, and 3.2 kilowatt (kW) to 4kW solar PV systems with Solax inverters in the loft space. Consumer units were upgraded to divert excess generation to existing hot water tanks, and new interlinked smoke and heat detectors were fitted.

Why the Relationship Grew 

1. Proven renewables performance. By the time of the award, SES had spent three years keeping Curo’s feed-in tariff revenue online and had already earned an extension of scope into heat pump maintenance.
   
   
2. Knowledge of Curo’s homes. Work to improve the accuracy of Curo’s asset data gave SES a detailed understanding of the housing stock before a single retrofit survey began.
    
3. A familiar, directly employed team. Curo already knew and trusted the engineers maintaining its renewable assets, so the retrofit came from a partner rather than a new supplier.
   
   
4. A funded route was ready. SHDF Wave 2 funding, awarded through WECA, gave Curo a clear route to market, and SES’s experience with PAS 2035 delivery and funding paperwork reduced the risk of a first retrofit project.

Outcomes

The retrofit works lifted the average Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of the homes from E and D to B, meeting the funding requirement for the project.

On-site engagement days and coffee mornings held helped residents understand the works, timescales and benefits, which increased access and scheme uptake.

The team supported Curo with forecasts and milestone paperwork so that funding stayed on track and was reported successfully.