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Coal fires, fresh air and the hardy British: A historical view of domestic energy efficiency and thermal comfort in Britain

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  • Rudge, Janet

Abstract

Fuel poverty has been most commonly researched in the UK although it is experienced in other parts of Europe, to varying degrees. Boardman (1991) showed that energy inefficient buildings and heating systems are the most significant components of fuel poverty and highlighted the legacy of older buildings in this country that remain the majority of those now recognised as hard to treat. This paper considers the historical context for fuel poverty as a particularly British phenomenon. It examines claims that this is due to the mild climate and low indoor temperature expectations. It is concluded that there are significant differences from the European situation. The climate, particularly its characteristic changeability, has influenced building and heating methods, and the low priority given to energy efficiency by legislators. Significantly, economic priorities produced poor quality mass housing during the industrial revolution. The availability of coal encouraged the use of open fires, which demanded high ventilation rates. The British do value warmth but older buildings designed for heating with radiant open fires are difficult to adapt to convective central heating. Lessons can be drawn for newly industrialised economies similarly producing poor quality mass housing with low priorities for energy efficiency.

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  • Rudge, Janet, 2012. "Coal fires, fresh air and the hardy British: A historical view of domestic energy efficiency and thermal comfort in Britain," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 6-11.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:49:y:2012:i:c:p:6-11
    DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2011.11.064
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Milne, Geoffrey & Boardman, Brenda, 2000. "Making cold homes warmer: the effect of energy efficiency improvements in low-income homes A report to the Energy Action Grants Agency Charitable Trust," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 28(6-7), pages 411-424, June.
    2. Fisk, D.J., 1977. "Microeconomics and the demand for space heating," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 2(4), pages 391-405.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Scarpellini, Sabina & Sanz Hernández, M. Alexia & Llera-Sastresa, Eva & Aranda, Juan A. & López Rodríguez, María Esther, 2017. "The mediating role of social workers in the implementation of regional policies targeting energy poverty," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 367-375.
    3. Moser, Simon, 2013. "Poor energy poor: Energy saving obligations, distributional effects, and the malfunction of the priority group," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 1003-1010.
    4. Caitlin Robinson & Stefan Bouzarovski & Sarah Lindley, 2018. "Underrepresenting neighbourhood vulnerabilities? The measurement of fuel poverty in England," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 50(5), pages 1109-1127, August.
    5. Scarpellini, Sabina & Rivera-Torres, Pilar & Suárez-Perales, Inés & Aranda-Usón, Alfonso, 2015. "Analysis of energy poverty intensity from the perspective of the regional administration: Empirical evidence from households in southern Europe," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 729-738.
    6. Roberts, Erin, 2020. "Warming with wood: Exploring the everyday heating practices of rural off-gas households in Wales," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 142(C).
    7. Alexandru Maxim & Costică Mihai & Constantin-Marius Apostoaie & Cristian Popescu & Costel Istrate & Ionel Bostan, 2016. "Implications and Measurement of Energy Poverty across the European Union," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(5), pages 1-20, May.
    8. Lowans, Christopher & Furszyfer Del Rio, Dylan & Sovacool, Benjamin K. & Rooney, David & Foley, Aoife M., 2021. "What is the state of the art in energy and transport poverty metrics? A critical and comprehensive review," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    9. Marchand, Robert D. & Koh, S.C. Lenny & Morris, Jonathan C., 2015. "Delivering energy efficiency and carbon reduction schemes in England: Lessons from Green Deal Pioneer Places," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 84(C), pages 96-106.
    10. Stefan Bouzarovski & Saska Petrova & Sergio Tirado-Herrero, 2014. "From Fuel Poverty to Energy Vulnerability: The Importance of Services, Needs and Practices," SPRU Working Paper Series 2014-25, SPRU - Science Policy Research Unit, University of Sussex Business School.
    11. Moeller, Simon & Bauer, Amelie, 2022. "Energy (in)efficient comfort practices: How building retrofits influence energy behaviours in multi-apartment buildings," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 168(C).

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