National energy efficiency policy is largely determined by the EU legal framework and many of the national efficiency measures are the direct result of the implementation of EU directives (specifically from the “Clean Energy for all Europeans” package).

Regarding building policy on the national level, Member States are required to prepare Long-Term Renovation Strategies (LTRSs) to achieve a highly energy efficient and decarbonised building stock by 2050.

At the same time, regional and local authorities play a large role in leading and achieving EU climate initiatives, not only in drafting and implementing building policy, but often in implementing even more ambitious local targets.

Additionally, even if the decisions are coming from a high level, the renovation/construction work is carried out on the local level, having an impact on the local community. On the municipal level, voluntary signatories of the Covenant of Mayors (CoM) are required to create their own policy and framework to achieve climate goals, called Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans (SECAPs). The buildings sector is one of the main sectors covered under SECAPs.

This report, written by BPIE and published for the H2020 project Build Upon^2, maps possible synergies between local and national level policy objectives, namely SECAPs and LTRS, and provides suggestions on how local renovation initiatives can be duly taken into account in the drafting and implementation of LTRS, in order to create strong renovation policy in the buildings sector.