Adam Meyrick discusses Wales’ housing challenge and how devolved actors can solve it.
Why devolved powers are only half the story in Wales’ journey to net zero homes
When I first came across Solcer House, an experimental home designed and built by Cardiff University back in 2015, I was struck not by its futuristic gadgets or green credentials, but by how ordinary it looked. Yet, behind its modest design, this home in Pyle, Bridgend, was something radical: it generated more energy than it used and cost no more to build than a standard social home. It made me wonder: if we cracked this ten years ago, why isn’t it the norm today?
This ordinary home showcased strides towards ‘The Wales We Want’ (in Welsh, Y Gymru a Garem), a national conversation that places strong emphasis on housing as a key part of achieving a better future for Wales. Its values and priorities were baked into the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015, which it helped shape.
In particular, the housing vision within The Wales We Want focused on affordable and sustainable homes, acknowledging housing as a foundation for well-being. The movement supported policies that would ensure homes are not just affordable, but also built to last and environmentally friendly. And then there’s the climate reality. Homes in Wales make up over 10% of our total emissions. Every time we build to current standards, we lock in carbon for decades. Add in rising bills and fuel poverty, and it’s clear: net zero homes aren’t a luxury, they’re a necessity.
Building homes isn’t just about the newest tech or insulation; it’s about shaping the Wales we want to live in.
As someone who has spent the last two years researching Welsh policy and how Wales builds new homes, I’ve found that the answer to the title of this article isn’t just technical, but also political. Since 2011, Wales has had control over its own building regulations. That means we can design rules that suit our climate, economy and people. But power doesn’t guarantee progress. Between good intentions and greener homes is a complex system I’ve tried to untangle.
The devolution journey and why it matters
Devolution presents a unique opportunity for our nation to shape its new homes around its values, placing climate, community, and culture at the heart of what we build. But devolution isn’t a magic wand. While the Welsh Government has more freedom to act, this freedom is subject to certain limits. In my research, I found that good ideas often get tangled in the everyday realities of delivery: short term budgets, stretched teams, and pushback from developers all play a part.
Still, the principle is powerful. Building homes isn’t just about the newest tech or insulation; it’s about shaping the Wales we want to live in. Having the ability to set our own rules means we can do things differently, more fairly and more sustainably. But it also means taking responsibility when progress stalls. That’s why understanding the story of devolved building regulations matters, not just for politics, but for people and the homes they live in for generations to come.
Syniadau uchelgeisiol, awdurdodol a mentrus.
Ymunwch â ni i gyfrannu at wneud Cymru gwell.
Building regulations: progress and problems
One of the first things I learned while researching Welsh housing policy is this: regulations set the floor, not the ceiling. They’re meant to be the baseline for safety, quality and energy use in new homes. But when the floor is too low or not properly enforced, it becomes the ceiling by default.
Wales has made moves in the right direction, and energy standards have been tightened. There’s growing talk of whole-life carbon and renewable heating systems. However, while the ambition is clear, progress on the ground has been slower than many had hoped, especially compared to government targets outset before the devolved powers. For example, in 2007, the (then) Welsh Assembly Government announced that all new buildings funded by the Assembly would need to achieve zero carbon by 2011, and 14 years later, it’s evident that we still have some way to go.
In the interviews I conducted as part of my research, civil servants and academics alike spoke of good policy and motivated targets being trapped in a bottleneck, hampered by limited staffing, cautious leadership and pressure from developers concerned about costs. One policy lead described it as ‘designing for excellence but delivering for the minimum.’
This is important because building regulations aren’t just technical documents: they’re tools for change. If we want every new home in Wales to be part of our climate solution, the rules need to be clear, ambitious and properly enforced. Otherwise, we risk building tomorrow’s problems today.
If we want every new home in Wales to be part of our climate solution, the rules need to be clear, ambitious and properly enforced. Otherwise, we risk building tomorrow’s problems today.
The private sector challenge: who’s really building Wales?
One of the biggest surprises during my research was discovering just how much Wales relies on the private sector to deliver new homes. Around 80% of all new-build housing here is built by private developers. That means even the best government policy can struggle to make an impact if the market isn’t on board.
Several people I interviewed talked about a ‘minimum compliance’ culture in the industry, where builders do just enough to meet regulations, but rarely go beyond them. This isn’t necessarily down to bad intention, developers are juggling costs, risk and shareholder pressure. But it does mean that innovation or sustainability can stall before it reaches the construction site.
Meanwhile, local authorities, who are meant to enforce building standards, are often under-resourced and overstretched. The end result? Homes that tick boxes but miss the mark on energy performance, comfort or long-term value. This gap between public ambition and private delivery is one of the biggest hurdles in building greener, fairer homes at scale in Wales.
From ambition to action: what needs to change
Wales doesn’t lack ideas, but ideas alone won’t build better homes. Throughout my research, the same frustrations kept surfacing: the rules are improving, but enforcement is uneven; pilot schemes rarely scale; and the private sector still builds to the minimum.
Across the Severn Estuary, England, though often less ambitious on paper, sometimes moves quicker thanks to larger teams, more resources and more stable delivery frameworks. Wales has the vision. But without more support for local authorities and building control, even the best policies risk falling short of their potential.
Gofod i drafod, dadlau, ac ymchwilio.
Cefnogwch brif felin drafod annibynnol Cymru.
And while projects like Solcer House have shown what’s possible, one housing expert summed it up best: ‘You can’t live in a pilot.’ We need to transition away from experimenting to delivering at pace and at scale.
While Wales has made formal steps toward higher energy standards and renewable energy requirements in building regulations, lobbying from major housebuilders and fears of capital flight have curtailed the full adoption of stricter measures. Moreover, with energy infrastructure and grid decarbonisation largely reserved to Westminster, the impact of devolved regulation on carbon outcomes has been limited, relying heavily on UK-wide progress rather than Welsh-led policy transformation.
At the same time, the cost-of-living and energy crises are hitting households hard, and young people continue to struggle to enter the housing market. Building better homes isn’t just about climate; it’s also about comfort, health and keeping bills affordable.
Reflection
This study has likely identified more questions than it has attempted to answer. Although I feel notable contributions to this topic have been made with the support of my engaging and leading respondents. The overarching experience has left me humbled by the continuing realisation that we understand only small parts of the systems we are attempting to understand and solve.
This gap between public ambition and private delivery is one of the biggest hurdles in building greener, fairer homes at scale in Wales.
I am optimistic, however, that this research will motivate and advocate for others to advance this work to eventually forge a practical way forward. But I am now acutely aware that there is no silver bullet to many of the environmental problems we are attempting to tackle.
Wales has the tools to lead the way in building sustainable, affordable and modern homes fit for a changing climate. But the real challenge isn’t writing good policy. It’s putting it into practice.
We’ve got the ideas, the expertise and the power. What we need now is the follow through. If we get it right, Wales could be more than a testbed for innovation, it could be a blueprint others follow. And in a warming world, that’s something worth building.
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