Hastoe have launched their New-Build Standard, setting out the minimum requirements for all our new homes

Hastoe Development Director Ulrike Maccariello explains:

“We have always delivered beautiful, affordable homes that go beyond current building regulations”. Our New-Build Standard consolidates our approach and sets us on the road to meeting the Government’s carbon emission targets for 2050 as well as the Future Building Standard in 2025.”

As a rural housing specialist, Hastoe have a strong track record in being invited by rural communities to develop bespoke, small-scale, affordable developments, sensitive to specific local housing needs. Hastoe tailors each scheme to fit within its unique, local setting and circumstances. And for that reason no Hastoe development is ever the same.

Hastoe Board member Chris Parsons explains:

“First and foremost though, it’s the people who will live in our homes who are at the heart of the Standard. We want them to be able to afford to live comfortably and without facing increasing fuel bills. To ensure our properties are really energy-efficient, we focus on a fabric-first approach that prioritises high levels of insulation alongside high-performing windows and doors in our homes.”

The New-Build Standard has itself been informed by the Passivhaus approach – a highly energy-efficient building technique that uses ‘passive’ heat sources such as the sun, human occupants and household appliances to cut energy bills by up to 90% per year.

Hastoe was the first rural housing association in the UK to build Passivhaus homes, starting with Wimbish in Essex. And it aims to continue to develop at least one scheme to this standard every year, where a village wants to invest in this approach. However, the specialist materials and technologies required to do this can be costly.

Hastoe Development Director Ulrike Maccariello explains:

“Our Hastoe New-Build Standard takes the best of Passivhaus, adapted for delivery within current financial constraints. We focus on traditional, and therefore more cost-effective, building methods that help achieve a similar standard of energy-efficiency.”

A brochure about the New-Build Standard can be downloaded here

A video produced by Hastoe can be viewed below: