Switchee is a UK startup that makes social housing safer and healthier for people living there.
According to The Guardian website, the company just got £5 million in funding to grow its unique technology for avoiding the development of hazardous mould in homes.
Two investors, Axa Investment Managers, Alternatives and Octopus Ventures, gave the same amount of money for this funding.
With this new financial boost, Switchee plans to install the technology in one million homes in the United Kingdom.
Such an ambitious goal shows that Switchee is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life of people in social housing.
How Switches Technology Works?
Many more people want to use Switchee’s technology because they are aware of how efficiently it works.
The devices developed by Switchee are currently in use by over 130 social housing providers.
These devices monitor other factors like humidity, temperature, and pressure within homes and other buildings.
Thus, by analyzing this data, Switchee can avoid mould formation and reduce heating expenses for residents.
Further, the technology enhances the communication between the tenants and landlords, which enhances quick solutions to the arising problems.
This helps to prevent different problems from arising and getting out of hand, making the living conditions of the residents better.
The sad reason behind it
A child named Awaab Ishak died in 2020 due to mould in his home.
This sad event showed how important it is to have better housing, especially in social housing.
Tom Robins, Switchee’s CEO, said Awaab’s death was very sad. Switchee wants to stop this from happening again.
Robins said landlords want technology to improve their services and make housing safer for tenants.
A real milestone
Tom Robins believes that the new £5 million investment is a landmark for Switchee.
He stated that the funding would assist the firm in transitioning from reactive to proactive in managing social housing in the United Kingdom.
The main aim of this model is to address issues before they become a problem or cause harm in comparison to the reactive approach.
Robins discussed about the need for and issues with social housing and Switchee is to meet these needs by offering efficient technology interventions.
The company’s mission is to offer technology to everyone, irrespective of their financial conditions, to gain better living standards, especially for heating issues.
The effect on real-life
It has been seen that by using Switchee’s technology the lives of many people have greatly changed.
In one worst case, the Switchee device identified a damp home in which a single mother and her daughter had no option but to stay in the lounge and kitchen as the bedroom ceiling had caved in.
The family never informed their landlord about the problem because they had been evicted before for making complaints.
Due to Switchee’s technology, the issue was identified and the property was renovated completely, improving the family’s living standards.
This example shows how Switchee’s technology can in practice be useful for dealing with serious housing problems.
Environmental benefits
Switchee’s devices make life better and help the environment.
They save energy by making homes work better, which means less need for fossil fuels and less pollution.
Switchee got help from the government to put these devices in homes through funds like the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund.
This helps people live greener and use energy smarter, which is good for both the environment and the people who live in social housing.
Steady growth
There has been exceptional growth in the Switchee Company in the last few years.
According to sources, the company’s revenues have been growing at a steady rate of £2 million per year over the past three financial years and was £10 million for the most recent year.
Although it is profit-oriented, its primary goal is to expand its coverage to more homes and resolve more issues than to profit from its services.
This focus on growth is evident because the company is seeking to make lives better for as many people as possible by enhancing the efficiency of its technology.
The vision for the future
Switchee’s focus on social housing and sustainability was well-received by Octopus Ventures partner Edward Keelan.
He also emphasized that it is a B Corp company, which means that it has achieved a significant degree of social and environmental responsibility.
The Switchee application was developed in 2015 by Adam Fudakowski and Ian Napier.
Since its establishment, the company has linked thirty-five thousand devices in homes across the United Kingdom.
Tom Robins wants to achieve such a high goal of one million homes in the next five to ten years.
He also thanked another founder Ian Napier who sadly died in the year 2019. Napier’s ideas and desire to improve things are still the spirit of Switchee today.
A future for social housing
The new £5 million funding that Switchee received means that the company has all the necessary tools to change the quality of social housing in the United Kingdom.
By eliminating mould formation and saving heating costs, Switchee’s technology looks after the well-being of people as well as the environment.
These measures and the company’s active stance and willingness to improve living conditions suggest its positive impact on social housing.
As Switchee grows, its goal is to make safe healthy homes affordable for all those living in social housing.
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