Westdale Group

24/11/2025

Got a good feeling about this week, especially after seeing this lovely rainbow appear over our office this Monday morning! 😀🌈

21/11/2025

18/11/2025

We collaborate closely with our clients and tailor solutions to address their unique energy needs, ensuring affordable warmth and comfort in that most precious of places: a home.

www.westdale.uk

13/11/2025

12/11/2025

Abandoning or deprioritising fabric improvements in government energy efficiency schemes in response to poor quality installations would be a mistake. That's according to a report from INCA, the trade body representing the external wall insulation industry.

We agree.

Quality insulation and a fabric first approach, allied with the latest in renewables, can ensure a home retains heat, feels warm and inviting, and leads to a reduction in energy costs.

It can also lead to a better outcome for people’s mental health and wellbeing.

There are other community benefits to a fabric first approach.

A retrofit project can certainly rejuvenate an area. It can not only lead to a noticeable increase in property value but also a pleasing upturn in the pride people take in their refurbished homes and their community.

Applying such an attractive and fresh facade to these properties also delivers on the sustainability front. Cost-effective, of course, but also a more environmentally friendly option to demolition, creating an aesthetically pleasing and contemporary look for a fraction of the environmental impact.

07/11/2025

There are millions of UK households, many of them social homes, who are classed as ‘fuel poor’.

Fuel poverty relates to properties that must spend a high proportion of their household income to keep their home at a reasonable temperature. Fuel poverty is affected by three key factors: a household’s income, their fuel costs, and their energy consumption (which can clearly be affected by the energy efficiency of the dwelling).

With the battle against fuel poverty showing no real signs of going in people's favour, the drive to help households reduce their energy bills through quality retrofit of their homes needs to be given as much attention as possible.

Through our whole-house service offering, Westdale is committed to helping as many people and communities as possible cut down on their energy bills, while improving their property’s energy efficiency.

An inviting, energy efficient and sustainable home can play a critical role in people’s mental health and wellbeing.

07/11/2025

Great to see Artbrick to the fore at the 2025 Insulated Render and Cladding Association (INCA) Awards in Leeds last night.

INCA is the recognised trade association for the External Wall Insulation (EWI) industry, representing the major system designers, a nationwide network of specialist installers and key component suppliers.

And our friends at Structherm landed top spot (alongside Joyner Group) in the Refurbishment: Low Rise - Brick / Brick Effect Finish category, for the Bromford SHDF Scheme, with the judges commenting: “Beautifully designed replication of Cotswold stone expertly installed to deliver a standout project. Art Brick does it again!”

Structherm were also announced a winner in the Refurbishment: Mid Rise - Render / Traditional Finish category, along with Procast Group for the work on Acha Rothesay, Isle of Bute, which led to the judges commenting: "Superbly designed and expertly installed with a crisp render finish and sharp angles...an amazing transformation!"

29/10/2025

There is currently a lot of negative press levelled at External Wall Insulation (EWI) Installers, and some of it of course is justified. However, there are instances of damp and mould in properties, that have previously had EWI installed, where the method of the thermal solution installation is not the cause.

Westdale North Ltd have recently been asked to examine and comment on a report of past works, which in the first instance looked unfavourable.

However, having commissioned a full independent survey of the property, it was discovered that a leaking soil & vent pipe, that was routed through an extension, and a leaking toilet were actually the cause of the water ingress in the property, leading to the issue of damp & mould.

The surveyor has visited the property once these plumbing matters had been corrected, and used probes in multiple locations, to find that the damp readings in the property are now all zero or in an acceptable low and safe range. A direct quote from this report is: “Aside from consistently low scan readings for system moisture content, we saw no visible evidence of water ingress or water damage to the EWI system and therefore saw no reasonable justification for cutting into a functionally sound and dry system.”

EWI continues to be an excellent solution to improving the living conditions in hard-to-treat homes, and reducing fuel bills and we welcome continual improvement in regulation and scrutiny within the industry, to bring all installers up to the same high standards we aspire to.

24/10/2025

Quite a lot of the UK's housing stock is old, carbon intensive and poorly insulated.

And as a result it is making too many people poor and ill. There is evidence that it even contributes to excess winter deaths.

Fixing this problem will cost money, there's no doubt about that, BUT.....it will also deliver billions of pounds’ worth of benefits in the long term, raising living standards, boosting health and wellbeing among the population, stimulating economic growth and helping the UK’s ambitious plans of reaching net zero.

Improving the fabric of Britain’s homes simply has to go hand in hand with the drive for renewables such as solar panels and heat pumps.

A fabric approach to a energy efficient housing can play a huge part in reducing fuel poverty.

Insulation measures are very effective at reducing bills and improving the performance of a house - and external wall insulation can bring wider benefits too, including better health and outlook for residents.

🏠 At Westdale, on any project we undertake, we always look for ways to combine that crucial energy efficiency element with a focus on the wellbeing and happiness of people and communities.

10/10/2025

"Fight for mental health today to inspire a brighter tomorrow"...

Construction can sometimes be a hard, unyielding industry to be involved in. It can challenge you both physically and mentally.

Despite significant improvements in the safety of the construction workforce over recent years, mental health and wellbeing remains at crisis levels for workers, particularly for men.

And sadly, workers in construction are often disinclined to reach out for help and will instead suffer in silence until it is too much to handle.

Recognising the signs of poor mental health, and either seeking help or offering assistance and support, should be encouraged at every opportunity.

🏠 It also bears repeating just how a fabric-first property solution can also lead to a better outcome for people’s mental health and wellbeing, by ensuring that their home retains heat, and leads to a reduction in energy costs.