Building Skills and Confidence Through Retrofit Awareness Training
- Course Structure and Overview
- Industry Expertise & Guest Speakers
- Course Impact
- Reflections For The Future
Across Greater Manchester there are plans to retrofit 60,000 homes by 2030 however for this ambition to become a reality an additional 1,140 people need training in green jobs centred around construction and retrofit.
In early 2026, our employment team delivered the City & Guilds Retrofit Awareness course to 10 people. This course was designed to help learners understand the principles, practices, and career pathways within the rapidly growing retrofit sector.
Course Structure and Overview
The course blended classroom learning, industry insight, hands-on exploration, and real-world case studies, helping learners build both technical understanding and confidence in their future employment prospects.
The course was delivered in structured modules, each building on the last. Learners progressed from foundational safety knowledge to understanding energy efficient retrofitting, exploring green technologies, and learning about professional roles in retrofit.
1. Introduction to Retrofit
Learners started with learning what retrofit is, why it matters, and how it supports national energy‑efficiency goals, before exploring its purpose, the environmental and financial benefits, and real‑world examples of retrofit measures.
This early stage was crucial for learners:
“I didn’t know what retrofit was, so I’ve learnt all the different measures and how households can save energy.”
2. Health & Safety Foundations
Participants learned about health and safety in retrofit, including regulations, PPE, electrical safety, and accident reporting, before creating their own risk‑assessment forms to build practical skills they can use in future workplaces..
This structured approach helped learners, who shared:
“I’ve developed loads of different ways to warm your house, around retrofit.”
“I’m feeling more confident about going into work.”
3. Retrofit and Industry Standards
Learners explored PAS 2035, the UK’s retrofit standard, discussing how it improves quality and consistency, its benefits for installers, assessors and residents, and how it shapes professional roles. This allowed them to understand the differences between retrofit, refurbishment, renovation and maintenance.
4. Green Technologies & Dwelling Improvements
Learners researched green technologies used in retrofit, ways to reduce fuel costs in a home, and internal and external insulation systems, followed by self‑directed study to deepen their understanding of dwelling improvements and energy‑saving measures.
5. Professional Roles & Responsibilities
The groups explored new professional roles emerging in the retrofit sector and the responsibilities across the wider supply chain.
This helped learners understand the breadth of career opportunities available, something that motivated one learner, who said:
“I think this course could help my employment opportunities. I can talk about retrofit at interviews. I’m also going on to do a bricklaying course now.”
6. Real-World Learning: Visiting a Retrofitted Home
A highlight of the course for many of the learners was a site visit to a local resident’s retrofitted home, showing a variety of features from heat pumps to wall insulation.
This brought the learning to life and introduced the learners to staff from Your Home Better, who arranged access to the property and led a guided tour.
One learner commented:
“I knew about things like insulation and solar panels before, but I didn’t really understand how it all fitted together. Now I can see the bigger picture.”
Industry Expertise & Guest Speakers
Learners gained real world insights from a number of internal and external speakers sharing their experiences and knowledge:
- Abi and Shammy from our Green Doctor energy advice team shared lived experience, career insights and discussed pathways into the green sector.
- Charlie Baker from Your Home Better guided learners through the measures installed in the visited home and explained project management complexities.
- Karin, the course co-tutor, brought deep expertise from Green Doctor training, helping learners understand issues like thermal bridging, bypass, mould, and damp.
Course Impact
Through this course, learners gained a variety of positive outcomes, such as:
- Increased confidence, routine, and motivation
- Improved understanding of retrofit and energy-saving measures
- Clearer pathways into employment and further training
- Increased awareness of how retrofit improves health, comfort, and energy affordability
Individual Placement Support referrals were also made to assist several learners with job-search confidence, helping them to secure employment once they’d passed the course.
Read stories from our cohorts:
Reflections For The Future
This Retrofit Awareness course successfully blended technical learning, real-world examples, and industry expertise to create a meaningful, confidence-building experience for learners. The combination of structured teaching and hands-on exploration helped learners understand not just how retrofit works, but why it matters, for homes, communities, and the future of sustainable living.
In future delivery we will explore incorporating a physical rig to demonstrate retrofit installation techniques. While the course is primarily knowledge-based rather than practical, this enhancement will provide learners with a more interactive and engaging understanding of installation methods.