Our Citizen Science Project
Our team of local residents set out to learn, directly from their neighbours, what retrofit is really like to live through.
Lewisham Retrofit Hub
Our Citizen Science Project
Behind many of the changes to how this programme works is a team of local residents who set out to learn, directly from their neighbours, what retrofit is really like to live through.
What is a Citizen Scientist?
A Citizen Scientist is a member of the public who takes part in research within and for the benefit of their community.
No research background is needed. What matters is connection to the community and the willingness to listen carefully.
In Lewisham, a team of local residents and Goldsmiths students trained as Citizen Scientists over three months between January and March 2026, working with Lewisham Council’s Climate Resilience Team and South East London Community Energy (SELCE).
Their task was to find out what the retrofit process had actually been like for residents. Big programmes can move quickly, and the human experience of living through them can get lost along the way.
The Citizen Science project was designed to make sure that your needs don't get left behind during the retrofit process. Lewisham Council have used the feedback and learnings as a result of the project to help improve how we carry out retrofit works in peoples homes.
Citizen scientists visiting a retrofit installation in progress
(Photo: Maria Salaru)
What did they do?
The project ran across three interconnected strands:
Why does this matter?
The people who live in Lewisham Council’s homes carry knowledge that no technical survey can replace. They know which wall runs with water in January. They know how the building sounds in high wind. They know the weight of being told, in 1994, that the windows would be done soon and to still be waiting.
The Citizen Science project gave that knowledge and experience a route into the programme, and into the decisions that shape how future works are designed and delivered. What the team found has already changed how the programme operates: the handover requirements, the RLO protocols, the welcome pack, and the content of this website.
Image: The different areas Citizen Scientists went to for their research. (Paul Robinson)
If you are interested in getting involved in future phases, contact us at retrofit@lewisham.gov.uk.
Go to the next page to learn more about what the Citizen Scientists found out
What did Citizen Scientists find out?
Because the Citizen Scientists came from the community, they noticed things that a formal survey or a short site visit cannot capture: the small frustrations, the unanswered questions, the moments of confusion or relief that never make it into a report.
Their key findings included:
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