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Newcastle City Council (NCC) has a long history of improving energy efficiency and tackling affordable warmth issues across the city, with a number of initiatives developed and delivered over the last 30 years.


In March 2002 NCC published its Affordable Warmth Strategy, "Warm Homes, Healthy Lives" involving NCC, Newcastle Primary Care Trust and NEA as core partners.

Later in 2002, senior officers of NCC's Energy Centre and Housing Investment departments met with NEA to discuss developments in affordable warmth.

At that meeting members of the National Grid Affordable Warmth Team (NGAWT) described the concept of a Warm Zone and their initial findings from the pilot zone in Stockton on Tees.

Following the meeting, the NCC senior officers discussed the concept of a Warm Zone for Newcastle and agreed to work with the National Grid Affordable Warmth Team to develop a Zone for the city



This commitment by NCC was reinforced in the NCC Housing Strategy 2002, where energy efficiency was recognised as a high priority for the city and the desire to set up a Warm Zone was incorporated as an action for the financial year 2003/04.

National Grid Affordable Warmth Team (NGAWT) and NCC worked together through 2003 to develop the Newcastle Warm Zone, briefing key officers and council members to build support, investigating funding options and coordinating activities with the existing affordable warmth 'infrastructure' across the city.

A draft business plan was prepared and an Energy Efficiency Commitment (EEC) partner selected in the autumn of 2003, with the agreed target to formally launch the Zone in April 2004.

In order to drive forward the project, National Grid Affordable Warmth Team (NGAWT) identified and funded a full time Warm Zone Director with effect from November 2003. The Zone Director’s role was to enhance the Warm Zone partnership, complete funding applications and a detailed business plan, secure full approval from the NCC cabinet, establish the project and commence delivery to households across the City.

NCC appointed ScottishPower as the exclusive EEC partner for NWZ in December 2003. The full business plan was completed and approved by NCC Cabinet in February 2004. Major European funding was secured in March 2004.



A major European tendering exercise was planned and completed from February 2004 and four local insulation contractors were selected to deliver the core energy efficiency measures.

The NWZ delivery management team was recruited and trained throughout the early months of 2004. The project started marketing and awareness activities in April 2004 with the first assessment activity commencing one month later.

Following confirmation of European Social Fund support from Government Office North-East, a major recruitment exercise was undertaken in partnership with NCC to recruit and train 30 operational staff including doorstep assessors, administrators, benefits screeners and placements with contractor partners. These team members were all based in the more deprived areas in Newcastle and had previously been out of work.

In addition to ward-based marketing and awareness-raising activities a major launch event was held in Newcastle in May 2004, attended by the then Minister fro Small Business, Nigel Griffiths MP, the leader of NCC and senior representatives from all the major project partners in order to formally launch Newcastle Warm Zone.

The first year of operation of the Warm Zone has been a great success, with sound foundations and robust delivery mechanisms for the project now fully in place.



By March 2005 nearly 11,000 homes had been assessed, 5,000 insulation measures and 80,000 CFLs had been delivered, over 1,600 benefits checks had been completed and over £280,000 of new benefits had been secured and confirmed.

The Zone’s activities have led to an estimated annual reduction in CO2 emissions of around 4,700 tonnes.
NWZ has also employed 41 out-of-work trainees from deprived communities across the city in key delivery posts and helped secure 17 NVQ qualifications for these team members.

NWZ has worked closely with Your Homes Newcastle (YHN), the new housing ALMO, to coordinate work with the larger YHN investment programme.

The NWZ project continues to broaden its partnership, forming a core part of an enhanced Affordable Warmth Strategy for Newcastle, and is continuing to work towards its increased delivery targets in year 2.

Click here to download the Newcastle Warm Zone Year 1 Performance Summary