Storm in a tea cup?

Glass Times editor Nathan Bushell asks if the government’s latest announcement was worth the wait.

So, we finally have the details of the government’s much-heralded Green Homes Grant scheme. Was the wait worth it?

In the government’s defence, it was trying to kill several birds with one stone: energy efficiency; economic stimulation; job creation; consumer confidence; and the promotion of professionalism.

The net result for our industry has been a lot of head scratching and the desire for the whole situation to be clarified as soon as possible so that lost business can be recovered, and consumers can be persuaded that fenestration is largely overlooked by the scheme.

At the end of the day, the government simply doesn’t see windows and doors as being key to the overall energy efficiency of a home, otherwise they would have been primary measures.

Fortunately for our industry, homeowners don’t upgrade windows and doors primarily on their efficiency.

Recent research by Origin revealed that natural light and impressive front doors are high on homeowners’ sought-after special features list. Alongside ‘large garden’, ‘outside seating area’, and ‘a great view’, these are promising desires for manufacturers and installers of windows, front doors, sliding/folding doors, rooflights and conservatories.

Anecdotal evidence proves that homeowners are putting their money where their mouths are, as many companies are thankfully seeing a surge in demand.

In fact, some went so far as to suggest that the brakes applied by the government’s mishandling of the Green Homes Grant scheme announcement actually did them a favour by releasing the pressure.

Let’s just hope normal service will resume shortly.