MANCHESTER, England, January 16 /PRNewswire/ -- New research by Co-operative Bank Mortgages has revealed that Brits are planning to spend over GBP13 billion(i) making their homes greener, with over two thirds of people (68%) claiming they have already taken steps to reduce the carbon footprint of their homes over the last year alone.

Some of the most popular general 'green' changes already made by people include recycling (66%), switching to energy saving lighbulbs (60%), adding loft and cavity wall insulation (40%) and switching to double glazing (25%).

Most popular green improvements 1. Recycling household waste (66%) 2. Turn electrical items off stand-by (61%) 3. Switch to energy saving light bulbs (60%) 4. Turning the heating down (57%) 5. Washing clothes at 30 degrees (40%) 6. Cutting down on the number of baths taken (39%) 7. Adding loft insulation (26%) 8. Installing double glazing windows (25%) 9. Draught-proofing the home (15%) 10. Putting in cavity wall insulation (13%)

However the research also shows that going forward people are now planning to make less conventional green improvements. Initiatives that used to be extremely rare are now starting to become much more mainstream, with one in ten people planning to install rainwater capture to their homes (11%), whilst adding solar panels is an idea that is being considered by 7% of the population.

According to the research the 'greenest' region is Wales, where 75% of people have taken steps to make their homes greener over the past year. At the other end of the scale the regions with the lowest proportion of people who have made green improvements include Northern Ireland (65%) and the South West (65%).

Region % of people who have taken steps to make their homes greener over the past year 1. Wales 75% 2. East Anglia 74% 3. East Midlands 73% 4. North East 70% 5. Scotland 68% 6. North West 67% 7. South East 67% 8. West Midlands 66% 9. South 66% 10. South West 65% 11. Northern Ireland 65%

John Barker, Head of Mortgages at the Co-operative Bank comments, "This research clearly shows that people are really starting to sit up and take notice of green issues in relation to their homes. Houses are one of the largest sources of carbon dioxide emissions in the UK and taking steps to improve the environmental impact of homes is something that we strongly believe should be encouraged."

Notes to Editors:

Research carried out on behalf of Co-operative Bank by onepoll.com - amongst a representative sample of 1555 adults in December 2007.

(i)13 billion calculated as follows:

Average amount spent per household (GBP551.75) x no of UK households (24.9 million) Office for National Statistics 2006 = GBP13.7 billion

Details of the new green cash advance mortgage for existing customers are as follows

- Tracks BoE+0.04% for the first 2 years, currently 5.54%

- Followed by BoE +0.49% for the remainder of the mortgage term, currently 5.99%

- GBP95 application fee

- GBP140 exit fee

- No further advance fee

- 3% ERC's for the first 2 years

- Overall cost for comparison is 6.5%

- Portable

- Flexible features (terms and conditions apply)

- minimum amount that can be borrowed is GBP500 and maximum amount is GBP20,000

Customers wanting more information should call 0800-0288-288 or visit http://www.co-operativebank.co.uk/advance

For further information contact: Catherine Turner, Co-operative Financial Services Press Office, Tel: +44(0)161-827-5626, Fax: +44(0)161-832-2751 e-mail : catherine.turner@co-op.co.uk