What to Expect and How ECOSurv Supports You

Homes across the UK are being upgraded to become warmer, healthier, and more energy efficient. This process is known as retrofit.

If your home is due to have energy efficiency improvements, this page explains:

  • What retrofit means for you

  • How the retrofit process works

  • What PAS 2035 is and why it matters

  • How ECOSurv supports you as an independent Retrofit Coordinator, acting in your best interests throughout the journey

Our role is to make sure improvements are properly assessed, safely designed, and delivered to a recognised national standard, helping to avoid problems such as damp, mould, or poor workmanship.

What Is Retrofit?

Retrofit is the process of improving an existing home to reduce energy use and improve comfort.

Unlike general repairs or refurbishment, retrofit focuses specifically on how your home performs as a whole system.

Retrofit can help to:

  • Keep your home warmer in winter and cooler in summer

  • Reduce energy bills

  • Improve ventilation and indoor air quality

  • Reduce the risk of fuel poverty

  • Cut carbon emissions

Typical retrofit measures may include:

  • Loft, wall, or floor insulation

  • Improved windows and doors

  • Draught reduction

  • Better ventilation systems

  • More efficient heating and hot water systems

  • Solar panels or other low-carbon technologies

Not every home needs every measure. That is why proper assessment and coordination are essential.

Why Do Retrofit Projects Follow PAS 2035?

PAS 2035 is the UK’s national standard for managing domestic retrofit projects.

It exists to make sure retrofit work:

  • Is carefully planned

  • Takes the whole home into account

  • Avoids unintended consequences such as condensation, damp, or mould

  • Delivers genuine, long-term benefits for residents

Any publicly funded retrofit project must follow PAS 2035, and it is widely recognised as best practice for all retrofit work.

What Is a Retrofit Assessment?

Before any work is designed or installed, your home must be properly assessed.

A Retrofit Assessment looks at how your home currently performs and how you use it. It includes:

  • A condition survey – checking the fabric of the building

  • An energy assessment – understanding heat loss and energy use

  • An occupant assessment – understanding how the home is lived in

This information is critical. It ensures that improvements are right for your home, not a “one-size-fits-all” solution.

What Is a Retrofit Coordinator?

The Retrofit Coordinator is a key role required under PAS 2035.

Their job is to:

  • Oversee the retrofit process from start to finish

  • Make sure assessments, designs, and installations follow the standard

  • Coordinate the different professionals involved

  • Manage risks, especially around moisture, ventilation, and building performance

  • Act as a quality and compliance safeguard for residents

A poorly planned retrofit can lead to serious problems and can cost far more to fix later.
That is why PAS 2035 requires a qualified Retrofit Coordinator on every compliant project.

ECOSurv’s Role – Independent and Resident-Focused

ECOSurv acts as an independent Retrofit Coordinator.

This means:

  • We are not the installer

  • We are not selling products

  • We are not incentivised to recommend unnecessary measures

Our role is to provide independent oversight, ensuring that:

  • Decisions are evidence-based

  • Risks are properly managed

  • Your home is protected throughout the process

  • The work meets national standards

We work with housing providers, contractors, and designers, but our responsibility is always to the quality and safety of the retrofit process.

How the Retrofit Journey Works

While every project is slightly different, most PAS 2035 retrofit journeys follow these stages:

1. Assessment

Your home is surveyed to understand its condition, energy performance, and how it is used.

2. Design and Planning

Improvements are carefully designed using the assessment data, considering ventilation, moisture risk, and long-term performance.

3. Coordination and Checks

ECOSurv reviews and coordinates the proposals to ensure they meet PAS 2035 requirements before work starts.

4. Installation

Approved installers carry out the work in line with the agreed design.

5. Inspection, Testing, and Handover

The work is checked, documented, and signed off to confirm it has been completed correctly.

Throughout this process, the Retrofit Coordinator remains involved to maintain quality and compliance.

PAS 2035:2023 – What Has Changed?

The current standard, PAS 2035:2023, strengthens requirements around:

  • Airtightness and ventilation strategies

  • Moisture risk and damp prevention

  • Consistency with Building Regulations, including Approved Document F

  • Managing retrofit at scale while maintaining quality

These updates are designed to further protect residents and improve outcomes.

What Is PAS 2030?

While PAS 2035 governs how retrofit projects are managed, PAS 2030 sets standards for how energy efficiency measures are installed.

PAS 2030 covers:

  • Installation quality

  • Testing and commissioning

  • Record-keeping and handover

Together, PAS 2035 and PAS 2030 ensure retrofit work is well-planned, properly installed, and fully documented.

Funding and Retrofit Programmes

Many retrofit projects are supported through government funding programmes.

Regardless of how a project is funded, the same standards and protections apply.

ECOSurv’s role remains the same: to provide independent coordination and technical oversight so work is delivered safely and correctly.

What This Means for You as a Resident

Retrofit should:

  • Improve comfort and affordability

  • Be planned, not rushed

  • Be explained clearly

  • Respect your home and how you live in it

If you are part of a PAS 2035 retrofit project, the presence of an independent Retrofit Coordinator means:

  • Risks are being actively managed

  • Quality is being checked

  • Decisions are based on evidence, not assumptions

Questions or Concerns?

If you have questions about:

  • The retrofit process

  • What assessments involve

  • Why certain measures are being proposed

  • The role of ECOSurv

You are entitled to clear answers.

ECOSurv is here to provide independent oversight and assurance, helping to ensure your retrofit journey delivers real, lasting benefits to your home.