Manchester has been at the forefront of an experiment to improve the energy efficiency of homes, and the lives of those living in them.
The drive for more efficient methods of heating our home has benefits for all concerned parties; housebuilders have strict regulations they must meet to satisfy government criteria when it comes to efficiency.
For homeowners, better thermal insulation means less outlay on heating bills, and for the government, sustainable heating methods means an increased likelihood of meeting the carbon targets they have set for themselves to meet.
Whilst new homes are easy to make efficient, retrofitting into older housing stock presents a wholly different challenge.
Right here in Manchester, a project has already improved the lives of some residents ahead of the winter months. It isn’t the first time our city has been at the forefront of the environmental battle, with the Manchester Evening News reporting the council bought up 19 eco-friendly homes to let out as affordable earlier this year.
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The Great Places initiative is hoping to further help improve the lives of tenants by driving an experiment conducted on 28 homes on the Stretford Road Estate. In conjunction with insulation manufacturer Knauf, they are seeking to make homes warmer and cheaper to heat for residents, not just by ticking the boxes required by the Energy Performance Certificate. Sarah McClelland, Environmental Manager for Great Places, believes the EPC certificates are hitting targets, but not delivering results.
“On paper, they hit our internal targets, but in reality, we were getting phone calls of complaints saying the customers were struggling to heat their homes,” she told Inside Housing Magazine.
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“We even had an MP letter saying, ‘What are you going to do about this housing?’
“So, we realised that while on paper they looked like they were insulated, maybe, in reality, things weren’t working as well as they could have been.”
The first round of improvements made on the estate led to an average improvement of 31% across the properties, reducing annual heating bills for residents to the tune of £411. Those are certainly impressive savings and something other tenants on the estate may well benefit from going forward. Great Places is said to be using a much higher specification loft insulation going forward, making the project a success in the eyes of those directly benefitting.
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There are several methods a tenant or homeowners can use to improve their energy efficiency. Whilst insulation is one method being developed by Great Places, Environmental Journal explains how grants can help homeowners install new boilers with improved efficiency.
An efficient boiler uses less fuel to produce the same heat in the home, making it cheaper to run. The older your boiler is, the more likely it is to be inefficient and costing you money.
A new boiler installation guide by HomeServe outlines how a new boiler might not be as expensive as you think, with like-for-like replacements being relatively straightforward from a fitting perspective. With potential savings of hundreds of pounds per year, installing a new appliance might pay for itself very quickly indeed.
Even in older homes, simply replacing old for new is a straightforward job that need not break the bank. Whilst the Great Places project in Manchester does not cover new boilers, improved thermal properties on the estate could prompt some resident to investigate further measures to save themselves money, and help turn Manchester’s housing stock eco-friendly and even more energy-efficient.
A ‘legacy walk’ in memory of the Joe Thompson is taking place across Greater Manchester
Danny Jones
The ‘Walk With Me for JT’, a.k.a Joe Thompson ‘Legacy Walk’, is back next month, and Greater Mancunians are being encouraged to take part.
Returning this year following his tragic passing last April, the now annual charity walk has already raised thousands for charity and is set for another big turnout.
Joe Thompson, an ex-Rochdale AFC and Bury FC player, sadly died at just 36 following a long battle with lymphoma, having been diagnosed three different times in 12 years.
While the young husband and father of two’s story is a heartbreaking one, it has also become a source of inspiration for so many across the North West and, indeed, across the UK, with people once again gearing up to complete a fundraising walk in his name.
Set to honour him by making the journey from his adopted home of Rochdale all the way to Old Trafford, with Thompson having come through Man United’s youth academy, the 15-mile trek will start at his former club’s Crown Oil Arena and stop at Bury’s Gigg Lane as well as Salford City’s Peninsula Stadium.
First held in 2024 under the ‘Walk With Me for JT’ banner, the initial legacy walk saw the Bath-born footballer and countless others complete 21 miles in an effort to raise money for treatment.
Gone but never forgotten, the charity walk survives not only in the hearts and souls of his family, friends and other people’s lives he touched, but in the community spirit that his struggle and immense bravery in the face of illness helped spur on throughout the region and beyond.
Writing on social media, the Thompson family and the Foundation in his memory said, “Last year, he walked beside us. This year, we walk for him. This isn’t just a walk… It’s a promise. A promise to carry his strength, his belief, his light forward.
For every family facing illness. For everyone experiencing loss or hardship. For anyone who needs hope right now. Every step matters. Every mile has meaning. Whether you’ve walked before or this is your first time. You won’t walk alone.”
Join the annual Joe Thompson legacy walk on Saturday 2nd May 💙
Departing from the Crown Oil Arena, the 15-mile walk will finish at Manchester United's Old Trafford 🏟️
They signed off by adding: “Be part of something bigger. Be part of Joe’s legacy. Be part of the movement. Get a team together, invite your friends, colleagues and family and let’s raise funds to support The Joe Thompson Foundation.”
With the event beginning at 11am on Saturday, 2 May, there have already been numerous sign-ups, and you can expect even more to lace up their shoes and pay tribute to a local hero.
If you want to join in the effort and help do your bit, you can register for the 2026 Joe Thompson Legacy Walk right HERE.
Manchester rent is now ‘41% more expensive than five years ago, according to a recent study
Danny Jones
Yes, that’s right, as per some of the latest data on leased housing in central Manchester, it’s now approximately 41% more expensive to rent here than it was half a decade ago.
If you’ve lived in and around the city centre for long enough, chances are that you’ve already been feeling that difference, especially of late.
The ongoing cost-of-living crisis roughly began in 2021, following the economy and the world essentially opening back up after multiple lockdowns, so it’s little surprise that new research has shown affordability when it comes to renting has been on a slump ever since, too.
As well as the price of seemingly most things in everyday life going up post-pandemic, the average rental rate for even just a one-bedroom flat/apartment has jumped up significantly between 2020 and 2025.
Even some ‘available’ housing in town is being hampered by claddin (Credit: Valienne via WikiCommons)
That’s according to the numbers crunched by credit card experts, Zable, anyway.
Not only did their recent report cite the rent prices going up even before the cost of living crisis – essentially following the outset of the Covid-19 outbreak – but if their figures, the rate of inflation and the unwaveringly high demand for housing are anything to go by, this trajectory is likely to continue in 2026.
As of February this year, around one in three UK households is now a single-person occupancy, which already comes with its challenges (the Manchester City Council tax discount being a thin lifeline for countless), not to mention energy bills and the cost of groceries continuing on an upwards trend.
Put in the simplest and most reductive terms, it’s now almost £300 dearer for most people to live on their own than it was back in 2020, and besides Liverpool clocking in as second on the list of increasingly expensive cities to live (a 42.12% increase), Manchester came in third.
You can see the full table down below:
Rank
City
% increase – 2020-2025
Difference from 2020 to 2025 in £
Average rental cost for a 1 bed 2025
1
Newport
47.39%
£2,611
£8,121
2
Liverpool
42.12%
£2,290
£7,727
3
Manchester
41.00%
£3,364
£11,569
4
Edinburgh
40.28%
£4,620
£16,090
5
Leicester
39.93%
£2,391
£8,379
6
Wolverhampton
39.22%
£2,049
£7,273
7
Nottingham
39.07%
£2,400
£8,543
8
Glasgow
38.02%
£2,679
£9,725
9
Colchester
37.63%
£2,617
£9,572
10
Cardiff
37.06%
£2,828
Average rental cost for a 1-bed 2025
Another fear is that with lots of people finding it hard to manage living in other major cities like London, even those moving to Manchester are also having an impact on how available affordable housing is here.
That’s why schemes such as the new ‘social rent’ development over in Wythenshawe are so important to the current generations of renters, with the possibility of owning your own property in the future becoming increasingly difficult for so many.
It’s also worth noting that Manchester ranked fourth among the British locations where the cost of living is said to have increased the most over the past five years, with the average difference in annual spend growing by an estimated 22.84%.
The Manc -
22nd September 2020 
