Montgomery Primary School in Devon is the UK's first zero carbon, climate – change ready school. Andy Pearson takes a look at the fabric first, 'tea cosy' principles behind the design of this award-winning building.

The government's cynical recent energy policy announcements represent a dereliction of duty to the vulnerable and to future generations. There is an alternative, argues award-winning passive house architect Justin Bere - and it's beautiful.

The Larixhaus is the first pre-fabricated straw bale passive house on the Iberian Peninsula. A project that took 7 months from start to finish, this single family home is located in the town of Collsuspina, Catalonia, Spain

The new CREST centre will comprise of three areas; the Hub, the Research & Development Lab and the Pavilion. The Pavilion will be newly developed while the Hub and Research & Development lab will be integrated into the existing Skills Centre building; with the work on the Hub area recently completed.

Zero carbon is great as a political aspiration but will it stack up effectively as a policy? Richard Hillyard examines Government aims to impose zero carbon targets on the construction industry. Back in July 2007 the Government published the Building a Greener Future statement. This policy document announced that all new build homes would be zero carbon from 2016.

The first thing to remember is that energy is never lost - it will simply change how it appears - heat is one form of energy but so are fuel, light or electricity. For instance, when you turn on a light bulb the energy brought to it by electricity is converted to light and heat.

As part of that strategy a Fabric Energy Efficiency Standard was developed that set the performance levels for the building fabric that would reduce the amount of energy required to heat a home and reach the Zero Carbon standard.

In part two of his two part article on quality assured Passivhaus buildings, Mark Siddall [www.leap4.it], who specialises in sustainable building design, explains the certification process in a little more detail.

In part 1 of a 2 part article, Mark Siddall of Low Energy Architectural Practice: LEAP [www.leap4.it ] observes that there appears to be mounting confusion about the Passivhaus standard and Passivhaus Certification

The political landscape in Northern Ireland is gradually changing. With the emphasis now on a ‘shared future’ it would be great to see a comprehensive vision for Northern Ireland and its low carbon construction agenda.

The project is distinguished as it will achieve all of the following three sustainable credentials:

Passivhaus Certified for Energy efficient envelope and ventilation system

BREEAM excellent in terms of the BRE sustainable benchmark for UK commercials buildings

If we claim that our buildings are green, ecologi­cal, sustainable, carbon neutral, or energy efficient, we need to ensure that we know how well they perform once they are in use, and how closely this relates to our design intentions.

Timber window manufacturers have focused hard on their products and have been rethinking, redesigning and reconsidering. Consumers might be forgiven for thinking twice before choosing timber windows.

Poorly insulated window frames and single glazed windows account for up to 20% of heat loss in the average home. If you upgrade to energy efficient windows, you can help reduce your energy consumption and save money!

Rainwater or greywater can be used in buildings for certain purposes;

Compost toilets are referred to for the first time;

Solar thermal systems require automatic protection against legionella; and hot taps must be positioned on the left of any appliance.

Built for private clients in Denby Dale, West Yorkshire, the project is all 8m2, 3 bedroom detached house, built to a tight budget of £141 k. It received its Passivhaus certification at the end of April, one of the first 3 projects to go through the Passivhaus certification process with Pete Warm of WARM: Low Energy Building Practice.

The Lancaster Cohousing project is a certified Passivhaus/Code for Sustainable Homes, level 6 and Life Time Homes, affordable community housing project. It has evolved through a participatory design process with the individual householders and Eco Arc Architects. In this article Andrew Yeats and Graham Bath provide an overview on the wall construction, and first floor construction, with particular regard to the integration of Passivhaus detailing.

Achieving 100-percent reduction in carbon emissions, even if from regulated emissions only, involves the significant use of on-site renewable energy sources. The practicalities of having enough roof space, not to mention the cost burden, has led to a further strategy being introduced

The name is banded around and is ultimately misunderstood by the general public. It has also become a generic term encompassing all things ecological and sustainable in terms of building and living in an environmentally friendly home.

Buying a newly built home is a big step into the unknown. As a sales negotiator, you play an important role in helping clients to understand the many benefits of choosing a newly built property. Price and location are not the only selling points these days energy efficiency is important too.