Proposed changes to PAS 2035 would collapse Retrofit 2
Proposed amendments to PAS 2035 and PAS 2030 were released for public comment by the British Standards Institution (BSI) back in early August. Elmhurst has been busy analysing these amendments and has identified an issue that could cause the retrofit supply chain to collapse.
Currently Retrofit Assessors are competent in all aspects of the requirement for the role as defined in PAS 2035; they therefore collect on site information in relationship to the energy assessment of the home, the condition of the property and details about the occupants. This information is supplied to the Retrofit Coordinator who is then able to agree intended outcomes with the owner, move through option evaluations, create a medium term plan, and finally coordinate the design and install process. Similarly Retrofit Coordinators are competent in the requirements of the role as defined in PAS 2035.
The BSI has issued a consultation on PAS 2035 and PAS 2030 standards with proposals for amendments in both documents. Whilst we agree with most of the improvements to the standards we have spotted on clause that can’t be correct.
The proposal in PAS 2035 suggests that Retrofit Assessors must now be Retrofit Coordinators. This move is neither welcome nor indeed workable in practice. We have spoken to Retrofit Coordinators at Elmhurst and they quite rightly deem themselves not competent in the aspects of assessment and collecting energy assessment data. Vice versa there are 1,000s of competent Retrofit Assessors who are working alongside Retrofit Coordinators to deliver assessments, as they are not necessarily competent in the role of Retrofit coordination.
Stuart Fairlie, Managing Director of Elmhurst Energy, comments: “We hope very much that it is a misunderstanding in drafting. Certainly it is not welcome by anyone in the retrofit industry. If this was to go into PAS 2035 effectively nearly every single Retrofit Assessor or Coordinator would not be competent to do their roles. This can’t be what is being suggested and we hope common sense puts this back to as it was.”
Elmhurst will be responding strongly to the consultation on behalf of our retrofit members and we encourage all retrofit professionals to do the same.
The deadline for this consultation is midnight 6th September.
BSI are only inviting comments on the changes proposed, to be based on the scope of work supplied separately. Any comments on the rest of the text of PAS 2030 and PAS 2035 are likely to be reserved for the next revision.
Links to Consultations:
The main headlines include:
- The proposal is to remove the ‘Retrofit Advisor’ role from the standard. For clarification, retrofit advice must still be given, but appropriately at all points in retrofit projects.
- 1.1 corrected the fact that DEAs are certified and register by a government authorised assessor body not UKAS as stated previously
- 1.2 is stating that for risk path B and C a Retrofit Assessor shall be a Retrofit Coordinator qualified in accordance with A.2
| A.1.2 currently reads: “For projects assessed as risk grade B or C, to which the requirements of Path B or Path C apply, a Retrofit Assessor shall be a Domestic Energy Assessor certified and registered by a UKAS-accredited assessor body, or who is working towards such certification and registration via a recognized RPEL process or via a training course that appears on the register maintained by Ofqual (for England), the Council for Curriculum Examinations and Assessment (for Northern Ireland), the Scottish Qualifications Authority (for Scotland) or Qualifications in Wales (for Wales).”
A.1.2 amends read as follows: For projects assessed as risk grade B or C, to which the requirements of Path B or Path C apply, a Retrofit Assessor shall be a Retrofit Coordinator qualified in accordance with A.2 and:
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