What are the available schemes to make your home more energy efficient?

With the current cost of living, the price of energy continuing to fluctuate, and concerns about the environment never being far from the headlines - making your home more energy efficient is both a smart financial move, and an important step towards a more sustainable future.

Improving energy efficiency across the country is also important for the UK Government, who have committed to reducing carbon emissions in order to achieve their net zero strategy by 2050.

A key part of the government’s approach is to reduce the carbon footprint of homes and small businesses across the UK.

To help achieve this goal, a number of government incentives for home energy efficiency have been introduced to help homeowners, landlords, and tenants reduce their energy consumption and produce clean, renewable energy.

In this article, we’re going to look at the benefits of taking advantage of UK home energy efficiency schemes, and provide an overview of some of the initiatives you might want to consider.

The benefits of making your home more energy efficient

Upgrading the energy efficiency of your home can deliver a wide range of benefits, all contributing to a better quality of living, reduced energy bills, and a more sustainable future for our planet.

For example, improving your home’s insulation can help you reduce energy wastage and help you maintain a warm and comfortable temperature throughout the year.

Homes that require less energy to heat are significantly cheaper to run, which can make a huge difference for households struggling with rising energy costs - significantly reducing your bills at the same as reducing your carbon emissions.

Installing renewable energy systems like solar panels and air source heat pumps can further reduce your reliance on energy from the national grid - helping bring down your energy costs even more and minimise your environmental footprint.

And choosing to make your home more energy efficient also has indirect benefits, as you’re actually supporting the growth of green jobs across the UK economy.

Which UK home energy efficiency schemes are available?

There are a variety of different government incentives for home energy efficiency in the UK, each with their own unique set of benefits and eligibility criteria.

Let’s take a look at each of the key schemes in more detail, so you can find out which one might be right for you.

ECO4 Scheme: Helping overcome fuel poverty

The (ECO4 scheme) is focused on helping low-income households gain access to energy-efficient home improvements and overcome fuel poverty.

One of the key eligibility criteria is financial, and the scheme is only directly accessible for homes that are currently receiving benefits such as:

Jobseekers Allowance
Income Support
Housing Benefit
Child Tax Credits
Pension Credit Guarantee Credit
Pension Credit Savings Credit
Universal Credit
Working Tax Credit

In addition, the household should also be off the gas mains grid.

There’s also energy performance criteria to meet to access the ECO4 scheme, with the initiative designed to focus on properties with Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) ratings of D and below - making sure that the homes most in need of upgrades receive priority attention.

However, if you don’t meet these initial eligibility criteria, your local authority might still be able to refer your to the scheme under something called ‘ECO4 Flex’ programme, if your household has a total income under £31,000, you live in an area with high levels of deprivation, there are people living in your property that are vulnerable to the cold, or you have children in the property that are eligible for free school meals.

There are a variety of home improvements that can be made as part of the ECO4 scheme, including the installation of cavity wall insulation and loft insulation to improve home energy efficiency across the UK.

Once your home is fully insulated, the scheme can also cover the installation of air source heat pumps, biomass boilers, and potentially solar panels.

The ECO4 scheme is planned to run until March 2026.

If you’re interested in benefiting from this UK home energy efficiency scheme, you can check your eligibility here!

BUS Scheme UK: An easy, cost-effective way to upgrade your old boiler

The (BUS) in the UK is another important initiative that the government has implemented to help reduce the carbon emissions from homes across the country.

This BUS scheme is designed to encourage UK homeowners to switch from inefficient gas boilers to more environmentally friendly home heating alternatives, such as heat pumps and biomass boilers, by providing grants to help cover the installation costs.

The BUS scheme in the UK is incredibly generous, with grants of up to £7,500 available to help cover the cost of installation for air source and ground source heat pumps and grants of up to £5,000 available for biomass boilers.

To be eligible for the scheme, you need to be a homeowner or the owner of a small non-domestic building in England and Wales. You also need to have a valid Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), and you must be replacing an existing fossil fuel heating system.

It’s also important to note that the eligibility for grants for biomass boilers only extends to properties in rural locations that aren’t connected to a mains gas supply.

The application process for the BUS scheme in the UK is installer-led, which means that an MCS certified installer needs to apply for the grant on behalf of the property owner.

This is the process we go through at Projects4Renewables with all of our air source heat pump customers - managing the entire process, from applying for a grant to redeeming it after we’ve completed the installation.

HUG Scheme: Delivering benefits for off-grid homes

The HUG Scheme is a little bit different, as it is specifically designed to address the unique challenges faced by homes that aren’t connected to the mains gas supply.

The main goal of this scheme is to improve the energy efficiency of these off-grid households, which often need to rely on more expensive, less efficient, and less environmentally friendly ways to heat their homes.

The grant covers a variety of energy efficiency solutions, including the installation of solar panels, insulation, air source heat pumps, and smart heating controls. And the best part of this scheme is that the improvements are made at no cost to the homeowner.

To qualify for the benefits of the HUG scheme, households must be located in England, be without a current gas supply, and your property must have an EPC rating below D.

From a financial perspective, your household needs to have a combined annual income of £36,000 or less, or be receiving income-related benefits.

The application process to access HUG scheme benefits is also slightly different from other schemes, as it needs to go through your local authority.

GBIS Scheme: The Great British Insulation Scheme

The GBIS Scheme is designed to improve home energy efficiency across the UK, reducing energy bills and addressing fuel poverty.

The clue is perhaps in the title of the scheme, but this initiative focuses solely on the installation of insulation to properties, and doesn’t cover energy generation solutions.

Similar to the ECO4 scheme and HUG scheme, it is only available to homes that have an EPC rating of D to G, as these are in the most need of energy-saving measures.

The big difference with the GBIS scheme compared to ECO4 and HUG is that it is open to both low-income and general households.

The low-income group includes homeowners receiving benefits such as universal credit or income support.

The general household group includes properties within Council Tax bands A to D in England and A to E in Scotland and Wales.

To apply, you’re able to check your eligibility here!

Take advantage of home energy efficiency incentives in East Anglia with Projects4Renewables

We’ve tried to explain each of the UK home energy efficiency schemes as simply as possible in this article - but you’re not on your own if you find all the details around eligibility for each scheme a little confusing.

But that's where Projects4Renewables can help.

We specialise in helping homeowners across East Anglia take full advantage of the various government incentives for home energy efficiency.

From the initial consultation, to the funding applications, to the installation of your energy-efficient home improvements - we’re here to guide you every step of the way.

Find out now if your eligible for FREE Energy Efficiency Measures in your home!