Glidevale Protect membranes specified on seven-home SIP scheme near Harrogate

Glidevale Protect has supplied airtightness and breather membranes for Granby Farm Grove, a seven-home structural insulated panel (SIP) development near Harrogate in North Yorkshire, with SIP Build UK delivering the SIP construction for developer Park Lane Homes.

The manufacturer said its Protect BarriAir airtightness membrane and Protect TF200 external wall breather membrane were installed on both the warm and cold sides of the insulation as part of SIP Build UK's wall system.

According to Glidevale Protect, the scheme redevelops a redundant farmstead and vacant cottage with a mix of detached, semi-detached and townhouse homes. Developer Park Lane Homes took a fabric-first approach, the company said.

Ian Still, national sales director at SIP Build UK, said: "The homes have been designed to exceed modern building regulation standards for energy efficiency, with the SIP construction providing a high performance, thermally efficient building fabric."

The build-up

Glidevale Protect said BarriAir was used as an air barrier on the internal face of the wall to create a continuous airtight layer and provide vapour control. As part of SIP Build UK's SIP system, the wall achieved a U-value of 0.17 W/m²K, the manufacturer said.

A co-branded TF200 membrane was fixed externally. Glidevale Protect said it gave temporary weather protection to the whole external wall during construction and a second line of defence against water penetration once the homes were finished.

SIP Build UK's own case study for the project lists Park Lane Homes as client and project manager and describes the scheme as seven high-specification family homes. The external walls use 150mm structural insulated panels, the roofs use attic trusses to create habitable space within the roof, and the intermediate floors use Caberdeck structural decking, which SIP Build UK says is derived from CaberFloor P5.

The SIP contractor's scope also took in additional steel and glulam structure. SIP Build UK said offsite manufacture helped the homes reach the weathertight stage efficiently.

Glidevale Protect describes TF200 as a breather membrane designed to protect external walls during the build process. The product is CE marked and BM TRADA certified, according to the manufacturer, which says it is used with timber frame panels, SIPs, cross-laminated timber panels and steel frame construction.

Future Homes Standard

John Mellor, head of marketing at Glidevale Protect, linked the project to the recent launch of the Future Homes Standard. He said: "With the dust now settling on the recent launch of the Future Homes Standard (FHS), now is the time where developers and structural timber manufacturers need support from their supply chain to navigate the increased performance demands on the building fabric."

Mellor said BarriAir had been used for many years on low energy and Passivhaus projects, alongside the company's sealing tapes on the warm side of the insulation.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published Building Circular 01/2026 on 24 March 2026, announcing updates to the Building Regulations following publication of the Future Homes and Buildings Standards. According to the department's accompanying letter, the amended regulations come into force on 24 March 2027, with transitional provisions for non-higher-risk work where building work is commenced, as defined, before 24 March 2028.

The companies

Glidevale Protect describes itself as a division of Building Product Design, with more than 40 years of experience and two manufacturing facilities in the UK. Its head office is in Sale, Greater Manchester.

Park Lane Homes says it specialises in smaller sites offering higher quality homes than mass-market alternatives and is building its presence in North and West Yorkshire.

Awards and programme

Glidevale Protect said phase one of the development, comprising the townhouses, was completed in October 2025. The project was then shortlisted in the Residential Project of the Year category at the 2026 Offsite Awards.

The Offsite Awards' 2026 finalists list names SIP Build UK's Granby Farm Grove, Harrogate, in that category alongside Deeside Timberframe's Archerview private housing development in Kilwinning and Panacea Building Systems' Warwick Road South scheme in Old Trafford. SIP Build UK was also a finalist in Best Use of Timber Technology for its Beamish Passive House project.

The Future Homes and Buildings Standards regulations take effect on 24 March 2027.