BEN adding insulation to his 1970's bungalow after receiving advice from Loco Home Retrofit

How to Retrofit Your Glasgow Home: A Guide to Lower Bills and Net-Zero Living

Glasgow is at a turning point. With a goal to reach Net-Zero by 2030, our city’s iconic but drafty sandstone tenements and gas-heated homes need a massive upgrade. Currently, 82% of Glasgow homes rely on gas, and 35% of our neighbors are facing fuel poverty.

The Glasgow Housing Retrofit Position Statement (2025) highlights a clear solution: the “One-Stop Shop” model. Leading this charge is Loco Home Retrofit, a community-owned co-operative helping Glaswegians transform their homes from energy-wasters into cosy, efficient spaces.


Why Energy Efficiency in Glasgow is Stagnating

Despite a 50% drop in city emissions since 2006, progress has stalled. Why? Because retrofitting a pre-1919 tenement isn’t as simple as sticking up some insulation.

Nearly half of Glasgow’s housing stock is classified as having poor energy efficiency. To meet our 2030 targets, we need to move away from “quick fixes” and toward Whole-Home Retrofit Plans.

Glasgow’s Energy Challenge by the Numbers:

  • 330,000: Total homes needing upgrades.
  • 272,000: Homes still heated by fossil fuel gas.
  • Only 3%: Of homes currently meet modern retrofit standards.
  • 28%: Of Glasgow’s total carbon footprint comes from our houses.

Our Expert Services:

ServiceBest For…What You Get
Whole Home PlanHomeownersJargon-free advice to identify your goals. A professional 4-hour survey and report with a prioritised roadmap.
Heat Pump PlanUpgradersDetailed heat-loss calculations for perfect system sizing.
Whole Tenement PlanNeighborsA coordinated strategy for entire blocks of flats.

Solving the Tenement Dilemma

If you live in one of Glasgow’s 70,000 sandstone tenements, you know the struggle: “breathable” stone requires specialist care. Using the wrong materials can cause damp, rot, and structural damage.


Loco Home: Your Stress-Free Path to a Warmer Home

We know that managing contractors and grants is overwhelming. We’re here to help with a three-phase journey:

  1. Planning: A bespoke whole home plan with cost and saving estimates.
  2. Implementation: We connect you to vetted, local Glasgow installers and ensure you know the funding that you’re entitled to.
  3. Completion: Quality control checks to ensure the job was done right.

Building a Greener Economy

When you work with a community-led co-operative, your money stays in your local economy. We focus on Community Wealth Building.


Ready to take control of your energy bills?

What Is Retrofit?

warmer home glasgow bearsden south lanarkshire epc consultation home energy
Georgina Boyd··0 comments

Retrofitting—the process of upgrading an existing building to improve how they feel and improving energy performance. When we talk about home retrofit, we mean fitting new energy efficiency measures and technology into your home, such as additional insulation, underfloor heating or a heat pump. This is to achieve better energy efficiency – which means lower…

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Keeping the Heat in: A Realist's Guide to Lowering Scottish Energy Bills

glasgow shawlands homes victorian terraces terraced sandstone 1900s heat pump
Loco Home Retrofit··0 comments

Let’s be honest. Living in Scotland means we’re often fighting a losing battle against the weather. We have some of the least efficient housing in Europe, and when you combine 100-year-old stone walls with a damp, freezing winter, your heating bill starts to look like a phone number (or you are under-heating your home and…

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Inspired by Guy Martin's home without bills?

warm home scotland less heat waste
Loco Home Retrofit··0 comments

If you’ve watched Guy Martin’s Home Without Bills on Channel 4 on Monday evening, you’ll have witnessed how an existing home can be transformed and made more efficient. If you’re based in Scotland and thinking about making your home more efficient, Loco Home Retrofit is a great place to start! Hear from our Founder, Chris…

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ScotGov shouldn't Be Waiting for Westminster to take action on cold homes 

cold home warm homes bill
Georgina Boyd··0 comments

Chris Carus, Managing Director, Loco Home Retrofit CIC  January has seen householders across Scotland digging themselves out of snowdrifts. While layering up against the chill, I’m been waiting for the imminent release of Westminster’s Warm Homes Plan.  This plan which will show how they will make homes warmer across Britain. Most of it will apply to England…

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