With the potential to fund up to two-thirds of the cost of installing energy-saving home improvements into your home, the UK government has introduced a new £2 billion ‘Green Homes Grant scheme’.
Underneath this scheme, both homeowners and landlords across England will be able to apply for vouchers worth up to two-thirds of the cost of upgrading their home to be more energy-efficient.
This scheme can pay for insulation, double glazing and much more. If you would like to find out more about this scheme, make sure to take a look at our guide below.
What Systems are Available?
If you are interested in investing in the Green Homes Grant Scheme, you can view a wider guide on the Simple Energy Advice website.
When you visit this website, you will be prompted to complete a survey about your home and its occupants to identify what systems are most suitable for you, your requirements and your home. It’s important to note that you’ll have to carry this out, even if you know exactly what systems you’ll like, as this is the only way to access the contact details of your local, reputable tradespeople that are eligible to work on the scheme.
The Green Homes Grant Scheme will allow you to claim vouchers to install either one or more energy-saving measures, including;
Air Source/ Ground Source Heat Pumps
Heat pumps are an incredibly effective and energy efficient source of hot water for heating your home. They work by absorbing heat from a source such as the air or the ground, and then transferring it into a liquid. The temperature is then increased and the liquid is used to provide heating for your home either through radiators or underfloor heating.
The main differences between the two types of heat pumps is an air source heat pump absorbs heat from the air and a ground source heat pump absorbs heat from the ground.
These systems are incredibly energy efficient, as even though they need electricity to run, the energy output is much greater than the input.
Solar Thermal
Solar thermal systems use energy from the sun to warm domestic hot water. They’re an excellent way to reduce your carbon footprint and also save on your monthly electricity bills.
The system will be fitted to your roof and will work all year round, whatever the weather, to collect heat from the sun.
It brings an immense amount of benefits, including delivering up to 70% of the hot water requirements of the average UK household.
Biomass Pellet Boilers
Biomass pellet boilers are boilers that run solely on burning wood pellets. These systems are a great choice for your home and can, in fact, fulfill all of your home’s heating and hot water requirements.
Solid Wall, Underfloor, Cavity Wall or Roof Installation
Insulation is possibly one of the most important investments you can make towards your home. After all, you spend the majority of your time in your home, so of course, you need to be comfortable!
Having proper insulation will fix a number of common issues in your home, including:
- Your home is cold in the winter and hot in the summer,
- You have huge heating bills,
- You walls are cold to touch when the temperature is low outside,
- Your furnace is on constantly,
- Your floors are cold in the winter,
- You feel a lot of drafts in your home.
How Can You Check Whether Your Home is Eligible?
If you would like to find out whether your home is eligible for a grant under the green homes grant, you can check via the Simple Energy Advice website. You can also check whether or not your home is eligible for the low-income scheme on the UK government website.
How Can You Claim Green Homes Grant Vouchers?
All of the advice and support that you will need around energy efficiency home improvements is available through the Simple Energy Advice service.
Simple Energy Advice will be able to suggest which home improvements are most appropriate for your home and for support in funding.
Once you have decided which systems you’d like to install into your home, you will be directed to a list of approved TrustMark and/or Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) registered tradespeople in their local area to work on these improvements.
Then, once all of your work is agreed, your vouchers will be issued.
Invest in the Green Homes Grant today
Our final, most important point that we will make in this article is that the scheme has been extended and you must redeem your vouchers and ensure that all of your home improvements are completed by 31 March 2022.
We hope that the above article has given you some inspiration to take those first steps towards a more energy-efficient, environmentally friendly home. We urge that whatever home improvements you choose, you choose a reputable installation company, such as Summit Energies, leading providers of alternative energy installations, including underfloor heating in Bristol.
