You can find funding schemes to help improve the energy efficiency of your home.
ECO funding
The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) is a government scheme that requires some energy companies to provide funding for energy efficiency improvements to eligible households. If you are on qualifying benefits you may be eligible.
Find out more about ECO funding on the Ofgem website.
ECO grants are available to cover all or part of the cost of energy efficiency measures. The most common measures are:
- loft insulation
- cavity wall insulation
- solid wall insulation
- replacement of a broken boiler
Your energy provider should inform you if the grant is available to you but you can also find out if you are eligible and apply on the Simple Energy Advice website.
The Greater London Authority (GLA) is also allowed to declare additional households in London as eligible for ECO funding, under the ECO Flexible Eligibility scheme. This applies to owner occupiers and private tenants only. To allow the GLA to declare eligible households, they have published a Statement of Intent on the GLA website, setting out the eligibility criteria for funding.
If you are struggling to keep warm in winter, you can also contact our Sutton Healthy Homes advice service partner Thinking Works on:
- call Think Works 0800 118 23 27
- send a text to Think Works on 07928 394 482
- send an email to Thinking Works
Download the superseded version of London Borough of Sutton's ECO2 statement of intent (PDF).
Boiler Upgrade Scheme
The government is providing grants to encourage homeowners to install low carbon heating systems such as heat pumps. This is through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS). These grants can help homeowners overcome the upfront cost of low carbon heating technologies.
The grants available can fund:
- £5,000 off the cost and installation of an air source heat pump
- £5,000 off the cost and installation of a biomass boiler
- £6,000 off the cost and installation of a ground source heat pump
These technologies should only be installed in homes that are fully insulated. This is because they emit a low level, constant heat, rather than providing heat on demand, like a gas boiler. One of the criteria for funding eligibility is that your home must have a current energy performance certificate (EPC), with no outstanding recommendations for loft or cavity wall insulation.
Check your EPC report on GOV.UK
It is essential that you ensure that you use a fully certified MCS installer to undertake these works. This is to ensure that the chosen technology is sized, installed and commissioned appropriately for your home.
Find out more and apply for the boiler upgrade scheme on GOV.UK.