The City of York Council has embraced the Certified Passivhaus standard, to deliver the energy efficient, comfortable, healthy new homes it requires. Their ambitious plan sees DUNCOMBE SQUARE – with 34 homes nearing completion, BURNHOLME GREEN - with 78 homes and 5 self-build plots completing in 2025. ORDNANCE LANE – with 90 new Passivhaus homes is due commence construction in 2025, alongside a retrofit of an existing block of 11 flats, and WILLOW HOUSE – approximately 40 new Passivhaus homes will be submitted for planning consent in 2025.

“City of York Council are pleased to be able fund Passivhaus training for contractors and tradespeople working in the city of York. The council has a strong pipeline of new-build Passivhaus homes and energy efficient retrofit of existing council homes over the next ten years. However, we have a challenge that many tradespeople and contractors lack Passivhaus experience or training. This makes it risky for them to tender for and construct our projects. We hope that by offering training and partnering with CHY Consultancy and Coaction, building contractors can get skilled up to deliver the exciting Passivhaus and Retrofit projects we are developing in York.”

Adam Harper, Housing Development Manager, City of York Council

With this pipeline of work the City of York Council are on a mission to highlight construction as a skillful and rewarding career, and have launched CONSTRUCTION YORK, backed by the government’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

“I’m a builder with 40 plus years' experience. I came to the Passivhaus standard in 2009/10 and built DENBY DALE, the first Certified Passivhaus cavity wall brick and block home in the UK. The standard opened my eyes to how I and my team could take pride in our skills and build quality assured, energy efficient, comfortable homes that perform. We have continued to build several new Passivhaus’s including off-site timber frame and many radical retrofits/conversions in the Huddersfield area. I have been delivering training, alongside a team of practicing professionals for Coaction, to pass on all the knowledge and lessons learnt over the past 15 years on.”** BILL BUTCHER,** Builder, Founding Director 21 Degrees & Coaction Trainer

The council is working with the leading social value enterprise consultancy CHY to boost the availability of Passivhaus construction skills in York. COACTION TRAINING CIC have been selected to deliver the following COURSES which are 100% funded by Construction York.

CERTIFIED PASSIVHAUS TRADESPERSON: Discover a proven fabric-first approach to low-energy building with our Certified Passivhaus Tradesperson course, designed for contractors at a supervisory or management level. You will develop skills to deliver successful Passivhaus builds on-site, whether large or small, and the knowledge to achieve the internationally recognized Passivhaus Tradesperson certificate, backed by UK-specific expertise.

• Courses running: Jan 2025 onwards
• Mode: Online (4 x 3hr sessions + 2hr exam) - Intermediate Course
• Days: consecutive Mondays and Tuesday Time: 9am – 12pm

PASSIVHAUS RETROFIT DELIVERY: Gain the knowledge needed to deliver successful deep fabric retrofits on-site. This course focuses on the practical challenges and best practices in retrofit projects, equipping you to manage unforeseen changes and ensure quality.

• Courses running: Nov 2024 and Jan 2025 onwards
• Mode: Online (4 x 3hr sessions) - Advanced Course (some prior knowledge of fabric-first approaches or Passivhaus required)
• Days: Consecutive Tuesday and Fridays Time: 9am – 12pm

BITESIZE LOW ENERGY DESIGN: Design-focused introduction to the essential components of sustainable building design, through the lens of Passivhaus, offering a quality-assured route to achieving healthy, high-performance buildings, with a focus on reducing energy use, while also addressing embodied energy and construction waste. No prior knowledge required.

• Courses running: Dec 2024 onwards (SEE DATES)
• Level: Introductory Course, no prior knowledge required.
• Mode: Online (4 x 2hr workshops and 15hrs self-study)
• Days: consecutive Tuesday or Wednesday and Friday Time: 1 – 3pm

Who can access funding?

You must be a contractor, specialist sub-contractor (groundworks, M&E, facades, timber frame, brickwork etc.) or tradesperson AND either based in York, OR working on projects in York.

For further information:

• Visit CONSTRUCTION YORK to register your interest
• Email Adam Harper, City of York Housing Development Manager: adam.harper@york.gov.uk