Scotland Aiming for all New Homes to be Built to a Passivhaus Equivalent Standard in Future

Passivhaus (or Passive House in English) is a science-based, building standard with a track record of delivering the finest, ultra-low-energy homes across the world. Developed in Germany over 30 years ago, it reduces a home’s heating bills by 79%, lowers carbon emissions and improves the comfort and health of its occupants.

Making the announcement in the Scottish Parliament in 2023, Patrick Harvie, the then Minister for Zero Carbon Buildings said: “Scotland should have been building highly energy-efficient homes for decades and if we had done what some other northern European nations have done, our retrofit challenges now would be far more manageable.”

The new legislation will cover custom and self build homes, as well as social housing.

The proposal is currently out for consultation and the first stage is due to be adopted as legislation in December 2024. The Scottish Passivhaus equivalent is likely to be introduced as a voluntary standard initially, to allow a transition period for the industry to skill up. Coldwells Build is supporting the Passivhaus Trust in encouraging responses to the consultation, to ensure the policy stays ambitious and on track. 

How we heat our buildings contributes significantly to climate change. A large portion of Scotland’s greenhouse gas emissions comes from heating the spaces where we live, work and play. Soaring energy bills have also forced 30% of Scottish households into fuel poverty.

The easiest way to cut both carbon emissions and the cost of living is to improve the performance of Scotland's homes and buildings, reducing their overall energy consumption and ending their reliance on fossil fuels.

To tackle this, the Scottish Government has set an ambitious target to become a net zero society by 2045. By improving the way new homes and buildings are built, Scotland is taking a giant leap towards achieving its goal.

The Scottish Government has confirmed it will introduce its own 'Passivhaus equivalent' rather than adopting the existing Passivhaus standard, for the reason that it's essentially owned and defined by an independent, external body. "As the Scottish Government is responsible for building standards, it’s important for us to set our own definition,” said Patrick Harvie MSP.

While it’s not yet known how a Scottish equivalent to Passivhaus will work in practice, we do know the new legislation aims to develop a building standard similar to Passivhaus, so it’s hoped that Scotland’s homes of the future will need to deliver equivalent performance for health, comfort and low heating bills. Such standards are best achieved by adopting 5 key Passivhaus principles:

Building a Passivhaus home now is a smart investment. It will save you money and put you a step ahead of the big changes to come.

As Scotland works towards its 2045 net zero target, all households will be required to cut their energy use by upgrading insulation, replacing oil and gas boilers and improving the overall condition of their homes. These energy improvement works are known as 'retrofitting'.

The Scottish Government estimates it will cost £33 billion to retrofit and decarbonise the country's housing stock. Grants are available to help, but homeowners will be expected to pick up part of the bill. Homes that don’t upgrade could become either unsellable or lose value. 

However, even with retrofitting, it will be challenging for most homes to match the performance of a new Passivhaus. Passivhaus homes are optimised for net zero. They’re fit for the future and will require little to no upgrading.

You won't need to worry about replacing boilers, upgrading insulation, or dealing with high heating bills. Older properties are likely to decline in value, while highly energy-efficient homes will become more desirable. In fact, Passivhaus properties are already attracting a market premium, with buyers paying 5-15% more due to their superior energy performance. Passsivhaus homes also offer significantly lower maintenance costs compared to conventional homes. 

Although a Passivhaus may cost 4-8% more to build upfront, it’s a smart long-term investment that pays off in the future.

At Coldwells Build, we’ve collaborated with leading Passivhaus designers, John Gilbert Architects, to develop a range of pre-designed, prefabricated homes – the first of their kind in Scotland. 

Our low-energy homes have been specially designed to work on almost any site in the country and can be Passivhaus certified. This is important to us, because an independently certified Passivhaus home is the highest mark of construction quality and occupant comfort. 

The homes are pre-designed, but offer the flexibility of choice. You can select from our range of materials, kitchen and bathroom options, colours, external cladding and doors. 

Introducing a Scottish Passivhaus equivalent presents a significant opportunity for Scotland's construction industry to build the skills and knowledge required to meet demand for high-quality sustainable homes. It's an important step towards achieving a net zero society and will benefit the country, the environment and most importantly, our future generations.