Lloyds Banking Group and Peabody Partner on £60 Million Loan to Retrofit Thousands of Social Homes

Lloyds Banking Group and Peabody have today announced a £60m loan agreement to fund the sustainable retrofit of thousands of social homes across London and the Southeast.

The loan, partially guaranteed by the National Wealth Fund (NWF) is the largest issued to date under the government-backed £1.3bn social housing retrofit guarantee scheme. The new and pioneering partnership between the public and private sector aims to deliver warmer, greener homes for social tenants, while supporting the UK’s broader net zero ambitions.

The funding will enable Peabody to carry out bespoke energy efficiency upgrades, including wall and loft insulation, low-energy lighting, heat pumps, solar panels, flood resilience measures, and water-saving technologies.

The announcement comes as the Group’s Chief Executive Charlie Nunn, hosted The Social Housing Forum earlier today, which convened leaders from housing, finance, government and the third sector to discuss new approaches to modernising the UK’s housing stock, including accelerating the retrofit of social housing.

Phil Day, Chief Financial Officer, Peabody says: “This additional funding is very welcome and will help us improve the energy efficiency of more residents’ homes, making them easier to keep warm and helping us meet our net zero targets. Our new Group Strategy focuses on three areas, one of which is providing better homes and places, and we’re pleased to be able to work with Lloyds to help deliver on our goals”

Jess Tomlinson, Global Head of Real Estate & Housing, Lloyds Banking Group says: “Accelerating the retrofit of the country’s social housing stock is a critical step in the UK transition to a low carbon economy. We’re proud to be working in partnership with the National Wealth Fund to enable housing associations, like Peabody, to provide more energy-efficient and cost-effective homes across the UK – helping improve health, work and home life for thousands of social housing residents.”

Stuart Nivison, Head of Portfolio Management, National Wealth Fund says: “We’re pleased to see our financial guarantee scheme in action, playing an important role in this significant transaction between Lloyds and Peabody. The scale of the retrofit challenge facing the social housing sector is clear, and by working in partnership with Lloyds we can help registered providers like Peabody access the financing they need to accelerate the delivery of warmer, greener homes for their tenants.”

Peabody case study: Warmer homes and lower bills for Islington residents

More than 300 Peabody homes on the Palmer Estate in Islington are now warmer, less drafty, and safer thanks to new insulation, windows, roofs, and lighting and heating controls.

The improvements are part funded by the government’s Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF), an initiative aimed at improving the energy efficiency of social housing. Together, all the measures have significantly improved the energy efficiency of those residents’ homes.

“The property is much warmer,” said one Palmer Estate resident after having new windows put in. “The noise from the bus garage (opposite) has reduced and they make the house look much better.” She also said she feels safer as the windows have good locks.