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UK government launches £1bn home insulation grant scheme

30/11/2022

Insulation fitted inside an attic Photo: Adobe Stock
The UK government’s ECO+ scheme will include £1bn in funding to ensure more households benefit from new home insulation

Photo: Adobe Stock

The UK government has announced a £1bn home insulation funding scheme as part of a government push to help people across the UK bring down their energy costs this winter.

Under the plans, the new ECO+ scheme extends funding to those who do not currently benefit from any other government support to upgrade their homes with energy saving measures such as insulation.
 

Of the £1bn funding available through the scheme, around 80% will be made available for those households who are in some of the least energy efficient homes in the country – those with an EPC (energy performance certificate) rating of D or below – and in the lower Council Tax bands.

 

Benefiting those households who do not currently receive any other government support to upgrade their homes, around a fifth of the fund will target those who are the most vulnerable, including those on means tested benefits or in fuel poverty.

 

The government also plans to significantly expand its ‘Help for Households’ campaign to help customers to reduce their own household energy usage and bills, while also giving vulnerable groups the right information for doing this without harming their health.

 

Commenting on the news, Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt said: ‘With Putin’s war driving up gas prices worldwide, I know many families are feeling worried about their energy bills this winter and beyond. Our extensive energy support package is insulating people from the worst of this crisis, but we’re also supporting people to permanently cut their costs. In the longer term, we need to make Britain more energy independent by generating more clean, affordable, home-grown power, but we also need more efficient homes and buildings.’

 

Since it was launched in January 2013, the government says that the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) schemes have delivered as many as 3.5mn energy-efficiency measures in around 2.4mn homes. The ECO+ scheme, which will run from spring 2023 for up to three years, is expected to save households around £310/y on their energy bills.