Autumn Budget Commits £3.4bn to 'Transform' 350,000 Low Income Homes
“Making buildings and homes cleaner and cheaper to run is essential for meeting Net Zero”. This was a statement used within the government’s Autumn Budget, which has committed £3.4 billion over the next three years to enhance the energy efficiency of households that need it most.
More than half of this funding (£1.8bn) will be used to support fuel poverty schemes which will deliver improvements and decarbonisation to more than 225,000 households and reduce their energy bills by over £200 a year.
This funding will be allocated and distributed by local authorities in England (who choose to apply) through local grants aimed at enabling energy performance upgrades. The goal; to help low-income and/or private rented homes achieve Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) Band C.
The Warm Homes Local Grant Guidance, states that eligible homes may access up to £15,000 for energy performance improvements and an additional £15,000 for installing low-carbon heating, such as heat pumps. For multiple properties, this funding is reduced by 50% per additional home. In the case of social housing, the cost of energy performance upgrades and low-carbon heating installations is shared between grant funding and the social housing landlord.
In addition to the initial funding for the Warm Homes Plan, the budget has also pledged to boost funding for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme in England and Wales for this year and next, in response to substantial demand. This initiative currently offers grants of up to £7,500 to help homeowners replace outdated boilers with modern, eco-friendly heat pumps.
What is the Government's Warm Homes Plan?
In its manifesto, the government committed to a £6.6bn Warm Homes Plan with the aim to upgrade 5 million homes over the next 5 years. This initiative seeks to reduce energy bills, create warmer homes for families, and tackle fuel poverty. The goal is to make substantial progress toward England’s statutory fuel poverty target by raising the energy efficiency of as many fuel-poor homes as possible to EPC Band C by 2030.
Elmhurst’s Technical Development Director, Andy Parkin, views this recent announcement as a positive step towards improving the country’s poorest performing homes. He commented:
“Tenants in properties with an EPC rating of D to G will be paying energy bills almost three times higher than those in EPC C-rated homes, which highlights an urgent need for support and regulation. Elmhurst has already been encouraged by the government’s plans to consult on uplifting the minimum energy efficiency standards of all rented homes, as well as updates to existing funding schemes. The announcements made in the most recent budget represents yet another positive step in helping to upgrade the country’s worst performing homes.
I am pleased to see how the funding announced here can join up with what we are expecting to see in the next phase of MEES; allowing Landlords to access funding for their properties makes sense and will offer assistance to landlords with portfolios. I am further encouraged to see ongoing support of the EPC, which should bring opportunities to Elmhurst members.
It was also good to see the chancellor commit £5bn to deliver the UK Government’s housing plan, as well as additional funding to eliminate dangerous cladding in response to the Grenfell Inquiry”.
Useful Links
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/autumn-budget-2024