Research hub helps UK citizens INHABIT healthier homes

By Georgie Gould

INHABIT project will develop ways to realise the health co-benefits of house retrofitting - improving indoor air quality and reducing mould and damp.

Credit: Getty images

Experts at the University of Surrey are collaborating on a major research project aiming to accelerate the creation of healthy, net zero homes across the UK where everyone enjoys clean air and comfort indoors.

Homes contribute about 14% of carbon footprint in the UK. Meeting the Government’s legally binding Net Zero target by 2050 makes it essential to retrofit the country’s 29 million homes.

Achieving this target requires an estimated £250-500 billion investment by 2050 and presents an opportunity to address population health and inequalities.

Working with experts from nine other universities and UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), researchers and our stakeholders ‘Indoor HABItability during the Transition to Net Zero Housing Hub’ (INHABIT) will develop ways to realise the health co-benefits of house retrofitting, by improving indoor air quality and reducing mould and damp.

Backed by £7.3 million of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) funding, the five-year INHABIT Hub brings together local, regional, and national authorities, housing associations, businesses, and research organisations to reduce negative effects from indoor environments during the transition to Net Zero housing with practical, scalable solutions.

The award is part of a £42 million joint NIHR and UKRI investment in game-changing research hubs designed to accelerate the UK’s journey to net zero. The hubs are focused around five challenge areas that will benefit people’s health and reduce impact on the environment:

Transport and the built environment
The indoor environment
Sustainable diets
Extreme weather
Decarbonising health and social care pathways

The INHABIT Hub is not just about theoretical research but will also create practical, real-world application s - leveraging significant investments from national, regional, and local initiatives in decarbonising the housing sector, such as ‘Net Zero Neighbourhoods’.

The INHABIT Hub aims to create healthier indoor environments, lower healthcare costs, reduce energy bills, and improve social equity – helping to create a transition to Net Zero that is environmentally sustainable and socially inclusive.

Health Minister Baroness Gillian Merron said: "This £42 million investment into net zero research hubs will bring together world-class researchers to boost public health and tackle inequalities. Through our Plan for Change, we will make the UK a clean energy superpower while improving health outcomes for everyone.”

Transdisciplinary experts that span health and social sciences, the built and natural environment with partners within the Hub will pioneer improvements in indoor environments and health during the Net Zero transition. They will analyse how retrofits impact indoor environments, health, and inequalities through integrated measurements and modelling to create the best solutions.

Notes for editors

Core Team: University of Birmingham, University of Edinburgh, University College London, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Cranfield University, King’s College London, London School of Economics and Political Science, Oxford Brookes University, University of Cambridge, University of Surrey
UK Health Security Agency

INHABIT project partners include:

WMCA Energy Capital, Birmingham City Council, Coventry City Council, City of Edinburgh Council, Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council, Hertfordshire County Council, Leeds City Council, Oxfordshire County Council, Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, Wyre Forest District. Council, City of York Council, Walsall Council, and Worcestershire County Council
Clarion Housing Association, Midland Heart, Walsall Housing Group, and Citizen Housing Group, Birmingham.
HSE Building Safety Regulator, Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, Public Health Scotland, Energy Saving Trust, Edinburgh Climate Change Institute, Environment and Forestry Directorate, Edinburgh, Sustainable Scotland Network, Met Office, and Mann+Hummel, Ludwigsburg, Germany.