Barclays and Lloyds Banking Group have announced a plan to make £1bn in loans available for social housing retrofit projects.

The loans, described as “competitively priced” will be supported by up to £750m of financial guarantees provided by the Treasury-owned National Wealth Fund.

According to the 2023 English housing survey, 28% of housing association properties and 32% of council homes have an energy performance certificate rating below ‘C’.