According to figures published by Simply Business, an insurance company which compares business insurance, in the past four years the plumbing industry has taken the hardest knock, with a 25% decline in skilled traders. While Simply Business has attributed the present UK economic climate for the significant drop, notable figures in the plumbing industry, like Charlie Mullins from Pimlico Plumbers for example, believes there’s more to it than just a miserable housing market.

Mullins has pinpointed a lack of training opportunities for traditional skilled trades, including plumbers and electricians, which he says has no doubt impacted on the drop in the number of plumbers trading in the UK. According to the founder of Pimlico Plumbers while economic conditions have seen better days, it’s bigger than simply a recessionary issue. Mullins believes it’s also an educational issue which is responsible for the figures.

“Vocational training became seen as sub-standard and secondary to academic-led learning in the last 20 years. The idea that to have a good career everybody needs to go to university is responsible for this,” explains Mullins.

He adds that the UK needs more skilled tradesmen and women if the country has any hope of getting the required levels back up to where they should be. But because the UK  has tried to play “catch up” for too many years, as it stands it’s a question of “too little, too late” despite ongoing industry attempts to increase the number of skilled tradespeople.

Currently Pimlico, which is the largest independent plumbing firm in the UK, have more than 30 vacancies for skilled and experienced plumbers but the company says it can be challenging to find individuals with the right skills and experience.

If you need the services of a skilled and experienced plumber Builder Guide can help by sourcing up to three free quotes. It’s just one of the recommendations on our check list for employing a plumber. Read our top tips to help you choose a plumber article for more information.

Last year Caerphilly tenants voted against a proposal which would see council control transferred to a new housing body. Tenants in 11,000 properties voted in force, with 65.2% voting in favour of remaining under council control.

To improve the energy efficiency of the council’s remaining stock £5 million has been spent on installing energy saving condensing boilers and external wall insulation to 600 properties, while another 170 properties have benefited from new uPVC windows. And the council haven’t stopped there. An additional £3 million has been put towards upgrading central heating systems, while £2 million was added to the pot for essential rewiring and another £3 million was spent on new bathroom installations and new kitchens in around 500 homes.

Around £200 million of investment is required to upgrade Gwent’s ageing council properties if they are to meet Welsh Housing Quality Standard by 2020, which will ensure properties are adequately heated, well insulated and fuel efficient. The £20 million energy efficiency upgrade is just the tip of the iceberg. To help implement the £200 million programme a housing task group has been established, comprising of 14 members split equally between tenants and councillors.

Commenting on the home improvements, Cllr Gerald Jones said he was “thrilled”that tenants had chosen to put their trust in the council.

The leading supplier of the heating and plumbing industry has spoken out following the publication of the Kingfisher European Home Report 2012, which takes into account the views and opinions of more than 15,000 homeowners living in the UK and Ireland, Turkey, Spain, Germany, Russia, Poland and France.

The survey gives an insightful snapshot of the way in which we view home improvements.  In an age of economic uncertainty, homeowners are prioritising improving over moving. The survey by Europe’s largest home improvement retailer has revealed that:

• 48% of householders envisage staying put in their current property for at least the next 10 years, choosing to make home improvements during that time.
• Home improvements were favoured over going green by 56% of the survey’s respondents.
• 42% would engage the services of a tradesperson to carry out a small repair job.
• Only 1 in 7 would be prepared to fit a new bathroom suite without help from a plumber.
• 32% of consumers are keen to have an eco-friendly home and implement energy efficiency solutions including cavity wall insulation, loft insulation and draught proofing.

The majority of homeowners would far rather employ the services of a qualified professional tradesperson to undertake DIY home improvements, than do the work themselves.

“Our customer insight found a third of tradespeople cited lack of new business leads as their biggest barrier to business growth. These latest stats highlight strong consumer demand for home improvement projects, bolstered by the fact that they will be relying on a tradesperson to get these jobs done, painting a brighter picture for the trade,” commented Sandra Everett, senior marketing manager at Plumbfix.

According to the Kingfisher report 9 out of 10 European households are splashing the cash to make improvements to their homes.

The sustainable housing project saw the development of 45 super-insulated homes in 2011; the first new homes to be built by the council for 30 years.  Around a dozen of the properties benefited from super insulation and were constructed to meet Level 6 of the Government’s Code for Sustainable Homes, the highest level achievable. A communal biomass boiler was installed to provide heating. The remaining 33 properties achieved Level 4 of the Code for Sustainable Homes, which aims to reduce carbon emissions and create sustainable homes to help tenants reduce their energy bills. The Pavillion Gardens complex also featured solar thermal water heating and air source heat pumps.

Despite the promise of sustainable living tenants were shocked when their energy bills started to arrive. Instead of being affordable to run, residents like Sunny and Raquel Tanday were faced with power bills in the region of £500 a quarter from E.ON since moving into their new home in December 2011. As a consequence of the sky high energy bills the new homes are providing too expensive for residents, many of whom want to move out.

“When we moved in here we thought it was going to be our dream house. They are lovely houses on a nice street, but they are not what we expected them to be in terms of power saving and cheap to run,” explained Mrs Tanday.

Bradford Council said it was addressing the issues with energy usage and billing, and was consulting with residents and the energy provider with a view to finding a solution so that tenants would be able to reduce their energy costs going forward. In the meantime the tenants would be reimbursed for any usage above the standard charge, with the council charging the development’s original building contractor for the costs incurred in making the necessary reimbursements.

Residents will have an opportunity to voice their concerns at a meeting which is scheduled to take place tomorrow.

Solid wall insulation has been revealed as the big winner, with £650 cash back available. However at least 50% of the property’s external walls will need to be insulated, otherwise the home improvement measure won’t be eligible for the cash back, which went live on 15 January.

If taking out energy efficient improvements such as loft and cavity wall insulation, adopters will be entitled to a cash back of £250 and £100 respectively while the insulation of a flat roof will qualify for £390 cash back.

The Green Deal is due to be launched on 28 January and the scheme will enable homeowners to improve their energy efficiency by installing a range of home insulation products and energy saving technologies.

“The Green Deal will be a great offer for people to insulate their homes from the cold, and their wallets from rising energy prices,” commented Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Davey. “With cash back too, energy saving has never been so attractive.”

Solar photovoltaic panels and solar thermal water heating systems are not eligible for the cash back however. Subsidies are currently available for the installation of solar PV through the feed-in tariff scheme, whilst solar thermal will be eligible for the Renewable Heat Incentive scheme when launched in summer 2013, which will pay homeowners for generating their own renewable heat. In addition, a one-off grant of £300 is also available for homeowners who install solar hot water, also known as solar thermal, which can be put towards installation costs.

Back in October the Government revealed that it had set aside a pot of £125 million which would be used to offer cash back incentives to encourage people to transform the energy efficiency of their homes by installing new windows, insulation and energy efficient boilers amongst a range of 40 plus energy saving measures. The current rates only apply for the first £40 million and may be subject to change once this has been surpassed.

With the Green Deal cash back scheme the more home improvements a household embraces the more money on offer. However because the money is available on a first-come-first-served basis you’ll need to be quick off the mark if you want to take advantage of it. So if you haven’t already put the wheels in motion to get your property assessed it would be wise to do so sooner rather than later. The Green Deal is set to launch on 28 January so time is of the essence.

If you would like to arrange for a Green Deal assessment contact the Energy Saving Trust on 0300 123 1234. Once your home has been assessed you’ll be able to obtain quotes for recommended measures from a Green Deal Provider before applying for a cash back voucher.

To learn more about the cash back scheme and to see the complete list of cash back scheme rates visit DECC’s official Green Deal website www.gdcashback.decc.gov.uk

Launched by NAPIT – otherwise known as the National Association of Professional Inspectors and Testers – the voluntary register is aiming to raise consumer awareness when it comes to finding and employing reputable electricians to undertake electrical work in their home.

While most people are fully aware of the safety issues of using an unregistered Gas Safe engineer to carry out work on gas appliances - an issue that recently received a lot of media attention following a Coronation Street carbon monoxide storyline – it’s quite a different story when it comes to electrical safety standards and the confusion surrounding employing electricians.

The ElectricSafe Register has been launched with that in mind and is campaigning hard to clear up any confusion. Encouraging homeowners, landlords and tenants to utilise the services of competent electricians who are registered with a Government approved competent persons scheme is the register’s main aim.

In November founder and CEO of NAPIT, John Andrews took to the road to raise electrical safety awareness, stopping off at 29 local radio stations. With an estimated combined audience of 580,000 the aim of the campaigning was to generate greater public understanding. The ElectricSafeRegister’s technical director Frank Bertie also appeared on interactive web TV show LetYourProperty.tv which targets UK landlords.

Supporting the campaign is Government-licensed not-for-profit organisation TrustMark, one of their most prominent industry supporters. The organisation’s chairman, Liz Male said: “The ElectricSafe Register is another development in the industry that will provide guidance and support to homeowners wanting to hire professional, registered electricians.”

Recent heavy rain and flooding has caused drainage systems in the Thames Valley to be overwhelmed Thames Water has admitted. Many of the calls the company has received in recent months came from customers reporting overflowing sewers and drains.

Flood warnings along the River Thames have eased recently but some homeowners in the Thames Valley have been affected by flooding for more than ten days continuously.

“It’s continually coming from the drains” said Richard Berkley who has had to contend with foul-smelling water around his home near Reading. “It’s not just flood water, it’s sewerage coming up too and it’s a serious pollution problem. It’s unbearable, it stinks.”

Thames Water engineers have found that sewers are struggling with one of the wettest years on record. In December alone the UK received up to 200% of the average rainfall normally received for the month. This had made the ground react rather like a soaked sponge sending excess water running across the ground and into sewers.

“While our network is operating largely as it should, it is struggling with the sheer volume of water going through it” said Natalie Beckerman, Thames Water customer service director. “Ground, which is already sodden, is like a soaked sponge, meaning flood water is running across the surface and into our sewers. They are designed to take wastewater from homes and businesses, not rivers too.”

The sheer volume of calls that Thames Water is receiving at the moment has also affected the company’s response times but the company says it is trying its best to prioritise people who are the most badly affected.

Council workers in Oxfordshire have been pumping flooded drains and installing flood defence measures while the Environment Agency has been clearing ‘pinch points’ along the Thames in order to try and get the water to carry on flowing downstream. However, Thames Water is by no means the only water authority to experience such problems.

In Northamptonshire Anglian Water had to constantly deal with flood water even as it retreated. The high water table is one of the main causes of the problems and that means flood water is entering the sewers leaving less room for the sewage water the sewers should be carrying instead. In addition high river, stream and brook levels are blocking water pipes reducing the effectiveness of some pumping stations. Rainfall is also tending to overwhelm surface water drains. In some circumstances, engineers have been called out only to find that water levels are so high they have been unable to do anything until the water recedes.

The scheme was founded by flooring manufacturing companies Altro and Polyflor and developed from a trial funded by WRAP (Waste Resources Action Programme). The scheme is managed by Axion Consulting and works with the supply chain to divert vinyl flooring waste away from landfill. Waste materials are collected from all kinds of organisations from small businesses to large construction projects in large bags or can be dropped off at 19 specialist sites across the UK. The waste material is recycled back into manufacturing producing new materials, which includes new flooring, traffic cones and road sign bases. This is not only of substantial benefit to the environment but also generates a reduction in waste collection and disposal costs. The scheme collected 447 tonnes of waste material in 2011 and doubled that amount in 2012.

The awards scheme is strongly-contested and recognises the commitment made by Recofloor collectors across the country. As well as Gold, Silver and Bronze awards there are other categories which celebrate firms making significant contributions to recycling during the year, including Contractor, Distributor and Construction Company of the Year, Greatest Improver, Best Newcomer and Recofloor Champion.

“As well as celebrating our achievements, it will be an excellent opportunity to share expert knowledge, learn more about how Recofloor can work for your business and meet fellow industry professionals” explained Recofloor’s Project Manager Jane Gardner

Recofloor currently has over 450 members across the supply chain from contractors to distributors to sole traders. The company hopes the awards ceremony will help to boost membership attracting more flooring contractors into the scheme and more drop-off sites. The company continues to grow every year according to Gardner. It offers flexibility throughout the supply chain as well as a cost-effective and efficient collection system which has so far managed to divert over 1,200 tonnes of waste away from landfill.

The Roofing Superstore, one of the UK’s leading independent roofing merchants, has warned that severe damage may have been done to many roofs throughout the UK following recent spells of extreme weather, particularly strong winds and lashing rain. In November wind speeds as high as 100 mph (160 kph) were recorded with ‘Amber’ warnings issued across parts of South Wales. The weather was bad enough to bring down power lines in several parts of the country as well as felling trees and on the odd occasion destroying houses. In Birmingham the wind was even strong enough to dislodge the roof of a mosque sending it flying into a nearby street killing three people.

More damage is likely to have occurred out of sight and the Roofing Superstore has commented that although a roof may appear to remain in good order it might not be so upon closer inspection. Minor damage can ultimately prove to be horrendously costly while dangerous faults can occur without necessarily being visible at first sight, thereby requiring careful inspection.

For this reason the superstore is calling on homeowners across the country to carry out detailed inspections of their roofs, or even better, to call out an expert to inspect the roof in detail. Roofs should be inspected regularly anyway, says the superstore, regardless of the weather. A roof should ideally be inspected twice a year so that minor damage can be repaired at minor cost. Specialist retailers can supply Ubiflex and general purpose roofing sheets which can be used to offset the expense of a total roof rebuild.

The superstore also warns that the chances of snow and ice hitting Britain in the next few months means that householders should not be complacent and should therefore be carrying out roof checks as soon as possible.

The final bill for City of York Council included work on empty homes costing £686,663 and joinery at a cost of £616,703 according to the council’s accounts.

The city has over 8,000 council tenants generating a maintenance bill of £2.747 million during 2011-12. Electrical repairs cost £348,435, plumbing cost £471,495, plastering generated a bill of £155,757 and roofing a bill of £279,251. Other work on doors cost £63,335 and brickwork cost £126,137.

And it doesn’t stop there either, clearing rubbish generated a bill of £51,604 while £12,407 was spent on pest control and £51,562 on damp-proofing. Other work the council is responsible for includes bathrooms, chimneys, gas and electrics, damage to doors, kitchen units, water supplies, drains, windows, ceilings floors, walls and stairs.

£3,156 was also paid in ‘customer compensation’ and other costs included fire safety checks, gas safety checks and assessments carried out when housing becomes vacant.

“The council has a responsibility to ensure all tenants’ homes are maintained to an acceptable standard” said Sharon Brookes, Head of Building Services. “This includes ensuring the structure and exterior of the building is in good repair and the supply of water, gas, electricity, sanitation and rubbish disposal are also in good working order.”

The council is also painting external woodwork and communal areas at present. Last year the cost for painting and repair reached £710,838 with added costs for work on stairlifts and passenger lifts. Local authorities have to abide by a ten year target set by the government in 2000 to bring all council housing up to the requirements of the Decent Home Standard. Houses have to be warm, weatherproof and have reasonably modern facilities. York has agreed to maintain its council housing stock at a level above the Decent Homes Standard which requires the council to modernise the whole house if it fails to meet the standard, rather than just replacing individual features. Most of the work is carried out through the Tenants Choice Modernisation scheme which includes central heating, kitchens, bathrooms, rewiring and re-roofing.