29 Oct 2026
Rural housing providers face a particular set of retrofit challenges. Housing stock is often dispersed, homes are frequently off the gas grid, and delivery costs and supply chain capacity can look very different from those in urban areas. With changes to Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) on the horizon and the Warm Homes programme taking shape, there has rarely been a more important time to build retrofit capability.
RISE Direct is a free-to-access service designed to help. Funded by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, it offers personalised support for housing providers and retrofit supply chain businesses, built around three simple stages:
- Review where your organisation is now, including its experience, capability and retrofit ambitions.
- Plan, with a personalised support plan tailored to your priorities and designed to fit around the demands of your day-to-day operations.
- Develop and deliver, with one-to-one guidance from retrofit specialists, practical tools and relevant learning materials.
New support services launched this Autumn
RISE Direct has grown this Autumn, with five new products developed to extend its support even further.
Retrofit Project Integrator aligns your housing energy performance data with planned capital investment programmes through to 2030. It identifies efficiencies and produces a prioritised, costed five-year investment plan.
Business Case Builder is a facilitated workshop that helps you structure your case, develop the narrative and secure stakeholder buy-in. An independent critical friend review then challenges assumptions and strengthens the final submission.
Beyond Retrofit helps you move from retrofit delivery into ‘business as usual’ mode. It covers workforce skills, maintenance and asset management, long-term financial planning for new technologies, and monitoring and evaluation.
Warm Neighbourhoods responds to the expected convergence of Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund and Warm Homes: Local Grant into a more area-based model from 2027/28. It supports partnership development, programme design and local delivery approaches for place-based, cross-tenure programmes. This may be especially relevant where rural authorities and housing providers need to work together across scattered communities.
Resident Engagement in-a-Box offers ready-to-use tools, templates, guidance and best practice to help you plan, deliver and evaluate engagement, so residents stay informed, involved and supported throughout the retrofit journey.
Getting started
Whether you are preparing for MEES, strengthening a funding bid or planning for life after retrofit, RISE Direct meets you where you are. Housing providers and supply chain businesses can find out more and request support at www.riseretrofit.org.uk/rise-direct.
