Healthy Homes

1,000 healthier Wairarapa homes

More than a 3,000 Wairarapa people are now living in warmer, drier, healthier homes thanks to a community-wide project to improve the health of Wairarapa people and save energy.

 Since it began in March 2004, the Wairarapa Healthy Homes Project has insulated and provided energy efficiency advice to 1,000 households throughout the Wairarapa at little or no cost to the occupants. 

 A variety of local and national organisations have joined forces to provide the more than $2.3 million invested so far in the insulation work.  They include the three Wairarapa district councils, the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA), Wairarapa DHB, Trust House, the Eastern & Central Community Trust and EnergySmart.

 Selected through health professionals, Work and Income and social agencies, people with high health needs, particularly respiratory problems, and Community Service Card holders are given priority for the fully-subsidised retrofits. 

 Ceiling and under floor insulation, hot water cylinder wraps, energy saving lamps and weatherproofing have been installed where possible in the homes.  Each home also received an energy check to determine where energy is being used and how it can be used more efficiently. 

A celebration was held in Masterton in April 2009 to recognise the 1,000 home milestone.  Wairarapa Healthy Homes steering committee chairman, Bob Francis, said the project was well on the way to achieving a long-term goal of insulating every home in the Wairarapa.  "The future of the project now depends on continuing support from the current funding organisations and on identifying new ones," he said.   

Mr Francis said feedback from project recipients had been 'hugely positive' and mirrored results of national research which showed that after they were insulated, homes were warmer and drier and occupants experienced a significant improvement in their health.   

The Wairarapa project was the first of its kind in New Zealand to attract funding from a district health board.  The Wairarapa DHB, GPs and health professionals have been lead referrers, mostly of people with respiratory problems which research has shown are improved by living in a warmer, drier home.

EECA account manager for partnership funding, Mike Fairfield, said the Wairarapa project had been a 'trailblazer' for others throughout New Zealand. "The co-operation between the partners in the Wairarapa project has become a model which we rolled out across the country.  The result has been that a number of other needy areas now have successful insulation projects as well."

"The continuity of support and leadership for the Wairarapa project have been absolutely outstanding and the leadership, passion and energy of Bob Francis have been instrumental in its success," said Mr Fairfield.

Wairarapa Healthy Homes project manager, EnergySmart, has created numerous new jobs and employed and trained local installers.  It has also run a series of energy efficiency workshops for referring and funding agencies.   Regular audits of workmanship are carried out by EECA.

Work and Income has been closely involved with the project as a referring agency and assisted with the employment of local people in new jobs as installers. 

An estimated 375,000 New Zealand homes do not have adequate ceiling insulation and over one million have inadequate underfloor insulation.  Homes built before 1977 were not required by law to be insulated. Up to 47% of a home's heat can be lost through ceilings and floors that are not insulated. 

Further information from:

Bob Francis                           or        Nathan Brown                       Mike Fairfield

WHH Chairman                                  EnergySmart                         Account Manager

Phone:  06 377 0447                          Phone: 0800 777 111             EECA, Partnership Funding

Mobile:  0274 447 677                       Mobile:  021 289 0464           027 454 5486