The newly formed Hammersmith and Fulham Climate, Sustainability and Travel Policy and Accountability Committee has outlined its initial focus, with energy bills and building retrofitting set to be key areas of examination in the upcoming year.
The committee held its inaugural meeting on Tuesday, June 30, 2026, where members were presented with an overview of the council's current climate and transport policies and a proposed work programme for 2026/27. The meeting agenda and public reports pack can be found here and here.
Councillor Ross Melton, Chair of the committee, highlighted the council's manifesto commitments to reduce energy bills for residents, cut greenhouse gas emissions, and improve air quality across the borough. The report detailed existing initiatives such as the H&F Healthy Homes programme, which aims to 'Halve the proportion of residents in fuel poverty by 2030' and 'Reach all residents interested in solar PV and retrofit support'. The H&F Healthy Homes programme was fully launched in March 2026, with ongoing efforts to market and scale it up.
Additionally, the retrofit programme for H&F social housing is 'Live' and aims to 'Retrofit all H&F social homes below EPC C by 2030, replace all failing gas boilers with clean alternatives'. However, a 'funding gap' exists for this program without further resources from central government. The decarbonisation of schools and corporate assets has a target for 'all H&F assets to be net zero by 2030'.
Despite these initiatives, the report also acknowledged significant challenges. These include the substantial investment needed to meet net-zero ambitions and limitations in local authority powers. Specifically, the council faces 'Limited local authority powers in key policy areas such as energy markets and national transport policy' and 'Limited local authority control over key levers such as energy pricing, national regulation and vehicle standards'. This constrains the council's ability to 'directly influence gas vs electricity pricing, national retrofit policy or vehicle phase-out timelines' and to 'deliver reductions in energy bills and emissions independently'.
Councillor Stewart Waine, Shadow Cabinet Member for Climate Emergency and Travel, was also in attendance. The committee's terms of reference include scrutinising the council's response to the climate emergency, transport policy, and the environmental impact of planning policy.
For the 2026/27 municipal year, the committee is considering themes such as energy bills and the cost of living, decarbonisation of buildings and retrofit, sustainable transport strategy, air quality improvement, climate finance and investment, and innovation and partnerships. Achieving sustained behaviour change across residents and businesses is identified as a complex and long-term challenge, evidenced by difficulties in increasing retrofit uptake, reducing car use, and changing travel habits despite existing programmes and engagement activity. While the report does not explicitly propose solutions for large-scale behavioural change, it does mention 'Community engagement and behaviour change initiatives' as a cross-cutting activity and suggests 'New approaches to climate finance and investment' and 'Innovation and partnerships' as potential areas for further exploration.
The committee is considering 'Innovation and partnerships' as a suggested theme for its work programme. The report highlights 'Active partnerships at regional, national and international level' as a strength, with current activities including 'Collaboration with GLA, OPDC, Brent and Ealing on heat network zoning' and 'Working with expert partners on transport, energy and engagement'. Furthermore, the council is 'Working with Imperial College University on Better Health, Better Air and AWAIR campaign to raise awareness of air pollution'.
The committee agreed to note the report's contents, endorse the proposed approach to its work programme, and identify priority themes for further detailed consideration.
