Not so desperate housewives

In 1986, the most memorable energy-related event was the explosion at Chernobyl nuclear power plant in the former Soviet Union. Few people would ever recall that in Britain, 1986 was declared “energy efficiency year” and that in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, an altogether more optimistic energy story was unfolding.

The Milton Keynes Development Corporation commissioned more than 30 developers to build 50 houses on seven acres to raise awareness about energy savings and act as a showcase for the new towns programme, of which Milton Keynes has arguably been the greatest success.

This groundbreaking experiment, called Energy World, was the starting point for a larger Energy Park spreading over 300 acres and comprising some 2000 homes plus commercial development. It demonstrated that building energy-efficient homes was financially viable; it established the blueprint for our current energy ratings; and, unlike housing competitions nowadays that offer fine concepts but little by way of actual homes, Energy World was built to last.

One of the aims of Energy World was to show that large detached houses could be made energy-efficient.

Picture by Julian Anderson

The 1980s energy agenda

As this year marks the 60th anniversary of the New Towns Act and 20 years since the houses were built in the Shenley Lodge neighbourhood of Milton Keynes, now was an appropriate time for Regenerate to see how the innovative experiment has fared. There couldn’t be a better guide to discuss the spirit and the ambition of the project than John Walker, former planning director of Milton Keynes Development Corporation. Walker, who hasn’t been back to Shenley Lodge for 15 years, recalls that in the 1980s the energy agenda was focused more on the economy than on the environment, especially after the drastic rise in oil prices that followed the Yom Kippur war of 1973: “Twenty years ago, nobody was thinking about global warming. What mattered was how to save people’s money. At the time [energy efficiency] was quirky. You had to be a real enthusiast to have solar panels on your roof.”

The aim of Energy World was to convince developers and the public that good energy efficiency was easy to achieve and that it wouldn’t cost developers more. The 32 developers included familiar names such as Barratt, Persimmon and Wimpey, alongside smaller independent firms. Housebuilding technology ranged from traditional brick to timber frame and poured concrete. All the homes featured insulated ground floors, roofs and walls and double glazing.

To explain to people what the costs of running these new houses would be, the corporation set up an energy rating standard called the Milton Keynes Energy Cost Index. According to this index an average house would be rated at 170, an energy-efficient house at 120 and most houses in Milton Keynes at below 100, so the lower the number, the more energy efficient the house. However Walker admits that this approach was not exactly consumer friendly, so it evolved into the National Home Energy Rating, with simple scores from zero to 10. Shenley Lodge houses reached a nine out of 10 mark, whereas the average British house at the time scored a mediocre four out of 10.

In household terms, it meant a saving of 80% on gas bills for residents as most homes were heated with gas.

The copper roof of Mrs Kirsopp’s three-bedroom house was designed in collaboration with the Copper Association, but the solar heating never worked

Picture by Julian Anderson

Energy-efficient features

As he walks through Shenley Lodge, Walker points out houses that were particularly innovative. A block of one two-bedroom and two three-bedroom homes designed by David Tuckley Associates for developer K Phillips showed that large detached houses could be made energy efficient with such features as south-facing living areas and conservatories. The Solaire, designed by Feilden Clegg Design for developer Haslam Homes, was a three-bed house, highlighting the advantage of designing houses with a large glazed facade for passive solar gain.

For Walker, Energy World proved that developers could build energy-efficient detached houses. Some trade magazines at the time didn’t share his enthusiasm, criticising the decision to build detached homes. “Of the 50 energy show houses at Energy World, only four schemes are based on compact building types; the remainder are sprawling ranch-type homes better suited to the energy decadence of the 1960s than the post-Chernobyl age,” wrote the reviewer for Building Design in September 1986.

This luxury of space is, however, what has given the homes enduring appeal for residents. Margaret Kirsopp, 68, moved into her home with her late husband in January 1987. The copper roof of their three-bedroom house was designed in collaboration with the Copper Association, but it wasn’t energy efficiency that attracted the Kirsopps to Shenley Lodge. “I just walked in and it felt right. The saving on running costs was not a huge thing. In fact, the solar heating never worked,” she tells Walker. “It wasn’t properly installed, apparently,” she adds. “Nobody seems to have the knowledge of it, that’s the trouble.”

Walker responds: “The fact that the Kirsopps didn’t buy it because of energy efficiency is fine. We wanted people to think: ‘That’s a nice house. That’s energy efficient. That’s a bonus’. It showed that energy efficiency could just be a normal part of good housing.”

Design quality

The aesthetic appeal of Energy World becomes obvious when one looks at the houses that have been built around the initial perimeter. While each of the 50 homes is unique, later additions, although pleasant, are more monotonous.

The £85,000 hut-like Self-Build House by Constructive Individuals, built as part of a training course in building skills, doesn’t bear comparison, architecturally, with the £200,000 Round House designed and built by architect Keith Horn. The latter was designed as a two-storey integral conservatory, its conical shape minimising the external surface area. Many houses at Energy World featured a conservatory, though on a less grand scale than the Round House. Walker quips: “This exhibition did a lot for the UK conservatory industry. It made people realise that a conservatory could be an energy-efficient addition and a very nice extra room.” Laing Homes’ two-bedroom house also featured a substantial conservatory.

The Round House’s conical shape minimises the external surface area

Picture by Julian Anderson

Tomorrow’s world today

One of the houses that particularly caught Walker’s imagination because of its innovative construction method was a timber-frame house built by a German company using hollow polystyrene block walls filled with concrete and clad with bricks. It was estimated to save 60% of energy costs. As he passes the house, built by the BBC for the Tomorrow’s World television programme a year after Energy World, Walker eagerly accepts owner Fay Rose’s invitation to check what has changed in the past 20 years.

Rose, 35, bought the five-bedroom house in January for £319,000 (when it was first built, its value was £130,000). It wasn’t energy efficiency that sold this house either. “All they installed was broken ages ago,” says Rose. What attracted her to Shenley Lodge was the opportunity to buy a detached house, a rarity in Milton Keynes. She says: “We liked it because every house [in Energy World] is different. When you walk around you don’t get bored because each house has its own features.”

In defence of Energy World, Walker says the houses were built to a very tight construction schedule between March and September 1986. “We could have started earlier. It was a hell of a rush to open for the prime minister’s visit. We could have given ourselves a bit more time,” he says.

Even a wind turbine installed at the entrance to the village had to be removed because it was poorly maintained and residents objected to the noise. The Solar Square with its symbolic sun dial has been obscured by weeds and even Walker is forced to concede the dial was a “bit gimmicky”.

However, none of this should undermine the achievements of Energy World. Walker says: “At the time nobody had heard of sustainability. Nobody was worried about CO2. The focus on energy efficiency here demonstrated to developers that they could do it at very little or no extra cost and that it could be done in very different but ordinary houses.” Overall, the demonstration village helped to promote Milton Keynes as a good place to live and all its houses were sold within a year.

The legacy

Energy World marked the beginning of a quest for greater energy efficiency. In 1986 the scheme’s energy standards were adopted for the whole of Milton Keynes and, as a result, almost 50,000 homes built there since 1987 have reached high energy efficiency standards. They inspired national standards, were the precursor for EcoHomes, and led to the establishment in 1990 of the charity National Energy Foundation. Many of Energy World’s individual ingredients may have been discarded, but its influence has been considerable. Who knows, one day the energy efficiency consultants might just be returning to Shenley Lodge to put that wind turbine back into place.

In the 80s you had to be a real enthusiast to have solar panels on your roof

John Walker, former planning director