Delivering to the AECB CarbonLite New Build Standard
Easthorpe Green is a development of 2, 3, 4 and 5-bedroom homes in Bottesford, Leicestershire, that we're delivering for our client Gusto Homes. It's a project that we're particularly excited to be working on because Gusto Homes have specified that the new homes on the development are built to the AECB CarbonLite New Build standard.
What is the AECB CarbonLite New Build Standard?
The AECB (Association for Environment Conscious Building) CarbonLite New Build standard is a rigorous framework for delivering genuinely low-energy, low-carbon buildings. It sits well above current UK Building Regulations, using Passivhaus methodology to model and verify energy performance. For new build homes, the CarbonLite approach can cut operational carbon emissions by around 70% compared to typical UK housing stock.
Unlike standard Building Regulations, which set a minimum requirement for energy performance, the AECB CarbonLite New Build standard requires homes to be modelled, built and tested to a much higher level. It uses the same methodology as the internationally recognised Passivhaus standard, with energy performance calculated using the Passive House Planning Package (PHPP) - a rigorous modelling tool used to predict and verify a building's energy performance at the design stage. This evidence-based framework sits well above what current regulations require and is expected to exceed the Future Homes Standard, coming into force in March 2027.
For homeowners, properties built to the AECB CarbonLite New Build standard maintain a more consistent and comfortable temperature throughout the year and are better protected against rising energy costs in the future. They're also homes that have been built and certified to a verified standard - which is a very different proposition to a new build that simply meets the minimum required by law.
What does AECB mean for each plot at Easthorpe Green?
Meeting the AECB CarbonLite New Build standard shapes how every home is built. At Easthorpe Green, that includes:
Air source heat pump systems with hot water cylinders and solar power diverters
High-performance triple glazed windows throughout
Solar PV panels at high output levels across the roofs
Underfloor heating on the ground floors, with radiators on upper floors
Enhanced insulation to walls, floors and roofs, with wall cavities of a minimum 150mm wide
Exceptional air tightness, with results projected as low as 1.5 m³/m²/hr (plot specific) - far exceeding the Building Regulations minimum of 8 m³/m²/hr
Mechanical ventilation designed to PHPP to maintain air quality without energy waste
Energy-efficient appliances throughout the kitchens (not an AECB requirement, but required as part of the PHPP calculation)
Smart EV chargers on every plot (smart chargers are not an AECB requirement)
Why high specifications need the right contractor
At Gusto Construction, we've been delivering energy-efficient homes for Gusto Homes for nearly 30 years. The specifications at Easthorpe Green (heat pumps, high-performance glazing, enhanced insulation, solar PV) are features we've been putting into developments for decades. The Future Homes Standard, coming into force in 2027, will require new homes to incorporate many of these features as standard.
This experience is what makes us well placed to deliver a project like Easthorpe Green, where the client's ambition is high, and the standard being built to reflects that.
We'll be sharing more updates as work progresses on site over the coming months.
Easthorpe Green is a development of 2, 3, 4 and 5-bedroom homes in Bottesford, Leicestershire, designed by Franklin Ellis Architects and delivered by Gusto Construction and Studio G for Gusto Homes.
