Can I get funding/support/ grant to make my house more energy efficient?
Is your household wasting hundreds of pounds each year because your home isn't energy efficient?
Read the following to see if you can apply for any funding or grants to make your home more energy efficient. If you make your house more energy efficient, it should help to make it cheaper to run and also make it feel warmer.
The government is investing several billion pounds in Help to Heat schemes to make sure homes are warmer and cheaper to heat. This includes the:
Boiler Upgrade Scheme
Local Authority Delivery Scheme (Sustainable Warmth Competition)
Home Upgrade Grant (Sustainable Warmth Competition)
Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund
Energy Company Obligation (ECO)
This funding is not delivered directly by the government, but through installers, local authorities, energy companies and other bodies.
Support through installers
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme provides grants to property owners to install low carbon heating systems such as heat pumps. To find out more information and apply for this scheme click here.
Through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, you could get a grant to cover part of the cost of replacing fossil fuel heating systems with a heat pump or biomass boiler.
Fossil fuel heating systems include oil, gas or electric.
After you’ve checked you’re eligible, find out how to apply for the grant.
This scheme is open to people in England and Wales.
If you live in Scotland, you might be able to get an interest-free loan or a grant to make your home more energy efficient.
If you live in Northern Ireland, you might be able to get a grant to replace your boiler.
Support through your local authority
There is something called the Sustainable Warmth Competition awards funding. This is given to local authorities to help them upgrade energy inefficient homes of lower income households in England.
Different local authorities will deliver the funding in different ways - so you will need to check with your council if you’re eligible.
Check if your council has received funding through this scheme.
The Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund will upgrade a significant amount of social housing. If your property is eligible, your social housing provider will contact you.
Support through your energy company
The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) is a requirement for energy suppliers to help households reduce the costs of their home heating by fitting energy-saving measures.
Different energy suppliers offer different amounts of support and different things. It can provide grants for energy efficiency, such as cavity wall insulation or loft insulation. Which can help prevent heat from escaping through the roof and walls. It can also help stop your home getting too hot in the summer.
You might also be able to get help with replacing an old boiler or other heating system.
To find out if you could qualify, check the Simple Energy Advice website or call Home Energy Scotland on 0808 808 2282.
Saving money and energy
There are many ways to save energy and money in your house. Stopping the draughts and fitting energy saving light bulbs are a good place to start and won’t cost you a huge amount of money. For more information on the other things that you could do to your house to save money and energy, please see our information on Retrofit and Energy Efficiency.
Earn money for generating renewable energy
Installing energy-generating technologies, such as solar panels, is something you should only consider after you've made your home as energy efficient as possible.
The upfront costs of installing energy-generating technology at home can be high. But there are tariffs that can pay for the electricity you generate at home. Speak to your energy company to get more information.