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Wood fibre insulation's role in the UK's housebuilding future

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Whilst predicting the future is always challenging, there are clear indicators pointing to the direction of travel for the housebuilding industry and the role that wood fibre insulation can play in supporting this ongoing shift .

External factors such as climate change are driving the UK Government’s net zero 2050 target[1], while the volatility in pricing and availability of fossil fuels is increasing the need to improve energy security through the adoption and use of home-grown renewable energy sources.

The move to reduce carbon emissions and transition to renewable energy is often described as a shift towards a more sustainable approach to housebuilding. However, the term ‘sustainability’ is frequently overused, covering a broad range of considerations that may not always have resonated with house buyers in the past. Where this approach leads to reduced energy bills, the benefit becomes clear and compelling. However, it also presents an opportunity to place the lived experience of the end user — the householder — at the centre of both new build and refurbishment projects.

This thinking is increasingly reflected in the concept of ‘healthy buildings’. While buildings themselves are not “healthy”, they should be designed and constructed in a way that supports, and certainly does not harm, the health and wellbeing of their occupants. The importance of this approach is reinforced by the establishment of an All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Healthy Buildings[2], helping to ensure that the future of housebuilding remains focused on people, not just carbon metrics.

How can wood fibre insulation help with the upcoming Future Homes Standard changes?

STEICO universal dry

The next change in building regulations has arrived in the form of the Future Homes Standard (FHS). It builds on the carbon emissions reductions introduced by successive editions of Part L – the conservation of fuel and power[3]. This is primarily focused on improving energy efficiency and reducing the carbon emissions associated with dwellings. It has been used by regulators to drive both new and existing buildings towards more efficient heating systems, designs that reduce uncontrolled heat loss and progressively improved thermal performance of the building fabric through lower U-values.

 

The FHS has updated Part L to ensure that homes built now are ready to become net zero carbon when the grid decarbonises. This requires a shift away from the use of fossil fuels towards low-carbon technologies such as heat pumps that use electricity to provide heating and domestic hot water. This is supplemented by the installation of solar PV panels comprising 40% of the ground floor area of the dwelling.

As heat pumps provide a lower grade of heat than traditional gas or oil-fired boilers, they work most effectively in tandem with a thermally efficient building fabric. The use of products such as wood fibre insulation and the creation of buildings with high levels of airtightness can help to reduce the rate of heat loss and therefore the energy demand on the heating system.

To ensure that these highly energy efficient designs do not produce unintended consequences for the occupants of net zero carbon houses they must consider other factors.

Ventilation

Designing adequate ventilation strategies is important in maintaining indoor air quality. Ventilation is covered by Part F[4] of the building regulations. This was revised in March 2026 at the same time as the newly updated Part L in line with the requirements of the FHS. It reflects the importance of recognising that increasingly airtight buildings must be properly ventilated to exhaust stale or moist air and replace it with fresh air from the outside.

Moisture control

Warm, moisture-laden air within a home can condense on cold surfaces. This condensation may lead to damp and mould growth, which can trigger respiratory conditions and worsen allergies. Whilst ventilation can help with the control of moisture, insulation, when combined with appropriate membranes and effective ventilation, can play a key role in managing moisture within homes.

Guidance on this is set out in BS 5250:2021 Management of moisture in buildings[5], which provides best practice for preventing the build-up of condensation that can pose health risks and damage the building fabric.

Just as condensation can form on cold internal surfaces, it can also occur within the construction itself. This is known as interstitial condensation and, if not properly controlled, can lead to mould growth within walls, floors or roofs. Over time, this may result in the decay of structural elements such as joists and rafters, weakening the structure and creating an unhealthy indoor environment.

A moisture management strategy that combines a vapour control layer (VCL)  with wood fibre insulation can form part of a robust approach to moisture management when correctly designed and installed. The VCL regulates the amount of water vapour entering the building fabric, while the diffusion-open nature of wood fibre insulation allows any moisture that does pass through to migrate safely outwards.

This approach supports the natural movement of vapour and helps to reduce the risk of condensation and mould growth. In contrast, systems that rely solely on vapour barriers or diffusion-closed materials may increase the risk of moisture becoming trapped within the structure, potentially leading to longer-term issues such as mould growth and a reduction in structural performance.

Overheating

Approved Document O[6] is a relatively new addition to the building regulations that came into effect in June 2022. It seeks to mitigate the effects of overheating by limiting solar gains through passive measures and ensuring that excess heat can be removed from inside the home.

There are a number of ways that overheating can be mitigated, and one approach is to use the building fabric as a thermal buffer. Like other types of insulation, wood fibre insulation can help to keep the home warm in winter. However, due to a combination of high density, high heat storage capacity and low thermal conductivity, wood fibre insulation can contribute to reducing the risk of summer overheating as part of a wider building design strategy.

Wood fibre insulation absorbs and retains heat during the day, slowing its transfer to internal spaces and creating a time delay, so peak solar heat does not immediately affect indoor temperatures. When the outside temperature reduces any heat retained within the wood fibre insulation can dissipate to the outside, helping to reduce internal temperatures overnight.

Martin Twamley, Technical Director at STEICO, explains the benefit of using wood fibre insulation to help reduce the risk of overheating

“The properties of wood fibre insulation allow it to store and hold onto heat and therefore slow the heats progress through the external building fabric. Wood fibre insulation helps to keep the interior spaces cooler during the day for householders. It is a simple way to use the building fabric to reduce the risk of overheating rather than simply relying on air conditioning which uses energy and can be expensive to install”.

What effect might customer opinions have on the future of housebuilding?

The changing regulations to deliver net zero carbon homes might help the government to meet their 2050 targets, but these homes need to appeal to house buyers or there will be little incentive for them to be built. In order to get some insight into whether the houses of the future appeal to the present population we can look at ‘The Green Homes Report[7]’ by Shakespeare Martineau. It identifies a ‘green home’ as one that has features which include.

  • Efficient use of energy, water and other resources
  • Use of renewable energy
  • Good indoor environmental air quality
  • High levels of airtightness to avoid heat loss
  • Use of materials that are non-toxic, ethical and sustainable

The results of the survey were split into first time buyers and second time buyers. 80% of first-time buyers are more likely to consider a green home for their next property closely followed by 73% of second time buyers.

This is good news for the government and for housebuilders as it shows that green homes appear to have appeal to the public.

Of course, the labels attached to these kinds of homes may vary using words such as ‘green’, ‘eco-friendly’ or ‘sustainable’ and the list of features may also differ, but the general concept seems to be accepted. We have already covered most of the features listed for green homes in our look at changing building regulations with the exception of the impact of the sourcing of materials for the houses of the future.

Many housebuilding projects that have a focus on sustainability look for bio-based materials such as wood fibre insulation as opposed to those derived from chemical or heavily energy intensive industrial processes. They may favour bio-based materials based on their carbon footprint including their contribution to the embodied carbon of the project. At the moment this is purely a voluntary exercise that may be required to meet criteria of third-party sustainability schemes. However, as we will cover next, the houses of the future may eventually be required to regulate embodied carbon by law.

Wood fibre insulation and the possible future regulation of embodied carbon

Embodied carbon refers to the emissions associated with a construction product throughout its lifecycle, including manufacture, transportation, installation, use on site, deconstruction and disposal. Where a product has an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD), housebuilders are able to compare the embodied carbon of different products.

Wood fibre insulation from STEICO is formed from at least 80% wood fibre and the naturally derived raw material comes from PEFC* certified forests. Many of STEICO’s products have EPDs that reflect the bound carbon dioxide equivalent content of the wood. For example, STEICOuniversal dry binds 353kg CO2eqduring Lifecycle Stage A1 as defined in EN 15804+A2 and can thus contribute to climate protection, making it a viable option for developers who are looking to reduce the embodied carbon within their projects.

At present, embodied carbon is not regulated, despite accounting for around 20%[8] of emissions from the UK’s built environment. However, there is growing discussion around the introduction of legislation to address this so that products can also be scrutinised on their overall carbon contribution to a project. The construction industry has already proposed a draft Approved Document[9] known as ‘Part Z’.

It may only be a matter of time before mainstream housebuilding is required to meet regulated targets for embodied carbon. In the meantime, there are some housing developers who are already using the embodied carbon of products as a specification criterion.

Housing developers already using wood fibre insulation to meet the UKs potential requirements of the future?

gs8, an award-winning sustainable housebuilder is using STEICO’s wood fibre insulation to help deliver thermal efficiency in 113 homes on the UK’s largest ‘Zero Bills’ development in Epping Forest .The site is being delivered in accordance with gs8’s ‘Planet Positive Framework’. It focuses on key areas when selecting products including:

  • Whole life carbon emissions
  • Waste management
  • Climate resilience
  • Durability and quality

This approach goes beyond ‘low-carbon’ or even ‘net zero ready’ homes, with neighbourhoods designed to store more carbon over their lifetime than they generate. Each home is targeted to achieve an EPC A rating of 110+, putting them among the most energy efficient dwellings in the UK.

Using wood fibre insulation products from STEICO offers a way for developers like gs8 to use an insulation largely composed of PEFC certified wood to help deliver energy efficiency and assist in meeting their embodied carbon targets.

The gs8 approach to embodied carbon, including the use of wood fibre insulation, may not yet be mainstream. However, as housebuilders work to meet evolving regulations and customer expectations, it could become a blueprint for creating homes that consider the health and comfort of the occupants as important as the future delivery of a low-carbon housebuilding

How can wood fibre insulation help to create refurbishments fit for the future?

As 80% of the buildings we will use in 2050 already exist today[10] any retrofitting we carry out should be designed to consider the same issues that are driving the design of new build properties.

As we approach 2050 more existing properties are likely to switch away from fossil fuels towards heat pumps. The risk of overheating will only rise[11] as the effects of climate change increase and the public attitude to the use of bio-based materials, such as wood fibre insulation, that supports their sustainability aspirations is likely to mirror that on offer in the new-build low carbon homes they see on the market.

Wood fibre insulation can provide the same benefits in refurbished properties as it does in new builds, helping to keep homes warmer in winter and cooler in summer.

The recent introduction of Awaab’s Law[12] requires social landlords to rapidly address and rectify instances of mould in buildings. It has highlighted the importance of using the correct materials and ventilation strategy in existing buildings.

Where solid walls or heritage buildings are formed from materials that allow moisture to pass freely through them, the use of diffusion-open wood fibre insulation helps to maintain the original moisture balance and reduces the chances that condensation and mould will form.

Whether constructing new homes or refurbishing existing properties to meet evolving regulations and society’s expectations for what comfortable, sustainable, low-carbon living should deliver, wood fibre insulation can play a valuable role in shaping the UK’s housebuilding future.

If you would like to enquire about using our wood fibre insulation on your next project, please contact our expert team who will be happy to help.

[1]https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/net-zero-strategy 
[2]https://healthyhomesbuildings.org.uk/
[3]https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/approved-document-l-2026
[4]https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/69c12224d588c92c483e4b6a/ADF1_2026.pdf
[5]https://knowledge.bsigroup.com/products/management-of-moisture-in-buildings-code-of-practice-1
[6]https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/overheating-approved-document-o
[7]https://www.shma.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2022/03/0220-Green-Homes-Report.pdf
[8]https://ukgbc.org/news/ukgbc-joins-industry-leaders-calling-for-government-to-regulate-embodied-carbon/
9]https://part-z.uk/proposal 
[10]https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/awaabs-law-guidance-for-social-landlords/awaabs-law-guidance-for-social-landlords-timeframes-for-repairs-in-the-social-rented-sector 
[11]www.theccc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Addressing-overheating-risk-in-existing-UK-homes-Arup.pdf  
[12]www.gov.uk/government/publications/awaabs-law-guidance-for-social-landlords/awaabs-law-guidance-for-social-landlords-timeframes-for-repairs-in-the-social-rented-sector 

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