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Comfort, control and safety: Developing a decarbonisation strategy for public CLASP buildings in Nottinghamshire

    Cohort 2025 PhD Project

    About The Project

    Nottinghamshire County Council (NottsCC) recently launched its 2024 Net Zero Framework, which sets out how the council will become net zero by 2030. One of the key priorities is to reduce its direct emissions by improving the energy efficiency of its buildings. Whilst NottsCC has reduced emissions from its buildings by 59% since 2014-15, energy use still accounts for 31% of its total baseline emissions. Budget cuts and inflation mean that reducing energy use to a minimum is essential not only for reaching net zero but to ensure the future financial sustainability of the council.

    A key area of concern for NottsCC is how to improve the energy efficiency and heating controls of some of its poorest-performing building stock. Between the 1950s and 1980s, a consortium of East Midlands local authorities used a construction method called CLASP to build low-cost, lightweight buildings. Whilst revolutionary at the time, they contain Asbestos, which is a serious public health issue. Nottinghamshire has the highest number of CLASP buildings in the UK. They are poorly insulated and expensive to heat, but difficult to modify due to the asbestos. There are too many buildings in use with CLASP Construction for them to be replaced in one go, thus a strategy is needed to identify those which can benefit from energy efficiency performance improvements.

    This PhD project aims to develop a framework to improve the energy efficiency of difficult-to-retrofit buildings within Nottinghamshire and raise awareness of NottsCC’s Net Zero activities. Different classes of CLASP buildings within the NottsCC portfolio will be reviewed to identify opportunities for energy efficiency interventions. Furthermore, an evidence-based guide on heating control systems for different building types will be developed to inform future heating system upgrades and new builds. The project will work with Inspire to raise awareness about NottsCC’s Net Zero work and to identify how local communities can contribute to the Net Zero journey.

    Project Aims 

    The overall aims of this project are to:  

    1. Identify the net zero energy potential of different categories of CLASP buildings in Nottinghamshire County Council’s building portfolio.  
    1. Develop heating system audit guides and thermal comfort assessment surveys for a range of difficult-to-upgrade buildings.
    2. Raise awareness of NottsCC Net Zero journey with local communities and find ways the public can contribute in this process.

    Project Team