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Bryden Wood's sustainability experts examine the critical challenge of climate resilience in UK residential design. Co-founder Martin Wood and Helen Hough, and Pablo Gugel from our sustainability team discuss how the push for net-zero buildings may inadvertently create dangerous overheating risks, exploring Mediterranean design solutions, cultural adaptation needs, and the scale of retrofit required. The conversation addresses the gap between regulatory compliance and actual thermal comfort in our changing climate.
Click the 'play button' above to watch the episode, or read our 5 Key Takeaways from this episode below...
The UK's drive to insulate existing homes for energy efficiency is inadvertently creating overheating risks. Highly insulated buildings without adequate cooling strategies could reach dangerously high temperatures during heatwaves, particularly threatening elderly and vulnerable populations as climate change intensifies.
Spanish residential architecture provides proven strategies the UK largely ignores: generous balconies, external shutters, and awnings that prevent solar heat gain. These passive design measures, evolved from centuries of hot climate experience, could prevent overheating without energy-intensive air conditioning.
Thermal comfort expectations need to shift. Rather than expecting perfect temperature control year-round, people must learn adaptive behaviours: strategic window opening, seasonal clothing choices, and accepting that homes will naturally be warmer in summer - cultural changes as important as technical upgrades.
Regulatory compliance focuses on energy performance but doesn't ensure thermal comfort in our changing climate. The UK needs to model future temperature scenarios in building standards, not just meet current net-zero targets that may create unlivable conditions during heat extremes.
Given the scale (millions of properties), urgency (net-zero by 2050), and cost (tens of thousands per home), individual action alone cannot deliver the required transformation. The ‘perfect storm’ of UK housing challenges - poor building stock, cultural barriers, financing gaps - likely requires decisive government intervention and strategic investment.
Watch Navigating the Energy Debate: Challenges and Solutions with Martin Wood, Adrian La Porta and John Dyson here
