If you’re struggling to heat your home, or want to make it more energy-efficient, you could get financial help. There are different types of financial help available depending on your situation – support to cover your bills, grants for energy-efficient home improvements, or loans to help spread the cost.

Financial help is often available whether you’re renting, a homeowner or a landlord.

The easiest way to discover what you’re entitled to is to speak to one of our friendly, experienced energy advisors for free. They’ll let you know what’s available based on your location and personal circumstances. Plus, they can advise on other ways to reduce your energy bills or maximise your income.

If you’d like to know more about the types of financial support available – which you can apply for without our help – this page outlines some of the common options. This list isn’t exhaustive, and may differ by location, so we always advise calling us or speaking with your local council to find out what’s suitable for you.

Click the links below for more information.

• Benefits and support
  Maximise your income so you can cover the cost of your energy bills. Funding available for renters, homeowners and landlords.
• Grants for energy-efficient home improvements
  Support to make your home cheaper to heat. Funding available for renters, homeowners and landlords.
• Energy loans
  For help to heat your home. Funding available for renters, homeowners and landlords.

Benefits and support

If you’re struggling to afford your energy bills, it’s important to make sure you’re receiving all the benefits you’re entitled to.

£15b worth of benefits go unclaimed each year. It’s worth completing the Gov UK benefits check to make sure you’re not missing out – it only takes 10 minutes.

Additional support to help with energy bills

Who is it for?

You may be entitled to extra help with fuel bills if you’re on a low income or claiming benefits.

What is it?

Claiming benefits can help you to afford necessities like heating your home. Government schemes (on the Gov UK website) include:

• Warm Home Discount
• Winter Fuel Payment
• Cost of Living Payment 
• Council Tax reduction and more.

Eligibility criteria

Click the links above for more information. Many are available to people on a low income or claiming other benefits.

How to apply

Your council welfare team and council tax teams can help you apply for household support grants and council tax rebates. You could also get support to reduce your water bills. Get in touch with your local council for assistance.

Grants for energy-efficient home improvements

Making your home more energy-efficient means it will be cheaper to heat and stay warmer for longer – so your energy bills will be lower.

There are a variety of grants for energy efficiency measures like installing insulation, upgrading your boiler, or switching to a low-carbon heating system.

The eligibility criteria for different grants are listed below. CSE’s energy advice team can also help you to understand if you can access grants for home energy efficiency improvements.

Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS)

Who is it for?

Homeowners, landlords.

What is it?

Funding towards the cost of a heat pump or biomass boiler to replace fossil fuel (oil, gas, electric or LPG) heating systems.

You can get:

• £7,500 towards an air source heat pump, ground source heat pump or water source heat pump.
• £2,500 towards an air-to-air heat pump.
• £5,000 towards a biomass boiler.

Eligibility criteria:

You must

• Own the property you’re applying for.
• Be replacing a fossil fuel heating system – such as oil, gas, electric or LPG.

Additionally, for funding towards a biomass boiler, the following must be true:

• Your property is off the gas grid. 
• Your property is in a rural location. 
• Your boiler has an emissions certificate showing that polluting emissions are kept to a minimum. 
• Your property is not a self-build. 

How to apply:

The grant is applied for by the company installing the new heat pump or biomass boiler. You’ll need to:

• Contact a suitable MCS-certified installer to get quotes for the work – we recommend you get quotes from at least three different installers.
• Confirm you’re eligible (your installer will tell you).
• Agree a quote with your chosen installer.

Then,

• Your installer will apply on your behalf on the Ofgem website.
• The value of the grant will be taken off the amount you pay for the installation, which will be shown on your quote and invoice.

For more information, visit the government website: Boiler Upgrade Scheme.

Warm Homes: Local Grant scheme

Who is it for?

Homeowners, landlords, renters (with permission from the landlord, who may need to contribute towards the cost of the work).

What is it?

Funding towards energy efficiency measures, such as insulation, solar panels or air source heat pumps. What is suitable for your home will be discovered through a home assessment.

Eligibility criteria:

To be eligible, you must: 

• Live in England. 

• Live in a local authority that has Warm Homes: Local Grant funding 

• Have a privately owned home (either by you or your landlord). 

• Have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) of D, E, F or G – if you do not know your home’s EPC, you can find it out when you apply. 

• Have a household income of £36,000 a year or less. If you earn more than that, you might still be eligible if either: 

• You live in a certain postcode area. 

• Someone in your household is getting certain benefits. 

How to apply

The best way is to contact your council to see if they are part of the Warm Homes: Local Grant scheme and ask them how to apply, as they can help you through it. You can also try applying via the government website: Apply for the Warm Homes: Local Grant. If you’re struggling to use the online form, you can call the Warm Homes: Local Grant assisted digital support helpline: 0800 098 7950. 

For more information, see the government website: Warm Homes: Local Grant. 

Energy loans

The work needed to improve the energy efficiency of your home is often expensive, with high upfront costs. If you can’t completely cover the cost of home energy-efficiency measures through a grant or your own funds, you might consider borrowing money to fund them.

Lendology

Who is it for?

Homeowners and landlords in certain council areas. 

What is it? 

Lendology, a not-for-private-profit community interest company, works with certain councils to offer low-interest loans to help fund energy-efficiency measures.  

Eligibility criteria 

They will consider your eligibility for a loan based on your location and circumstances. Check your eligibility on the Lendology website. 

How to apply 

Apply through the Lendology website. 

Credit union loans

Who’s it for? 

Homeowners, landlords and renters (although making improvements to the home might require the landlord’s permission).

What is it?

Credit unions are not-for-profit and owned by their members. They focus on offering members better rates and lower fees, whereas mainstream banks are run for profit. Loans may not be big enough to cover larger measures. 

Eligibility criteria 

The credit union will assess the suitability of their loans for your circumstances. You’ll likely need to become a member of the credit union in order to arrange a loan. 

How to apply 

Contact a local credit union. You can use a website like Find Your Credit Union to search with your postcode.

Equity release

Who is it for?

Homeowners aged 55+.

What is it?

Equity release is a way for homeowners aged 55 and over to unlock tax-free cash from their property’s value without moving. The funds, which can be taken as a lump sum or in smaller amounts, are repaid – along with interest – when you die or move into permanent care. It requires a specialist financial advisor.

For more information, see:

• What is Equity Release & How Does it Work? from Age UK.
• What is equity release? from MoneyHelper.

How to apply

Talk to a specialist financial advisor from MoneyHelper: Find a retirement or pension advisor. 

Bank cashback

Who’s it for? 

Homeowners. 

What is it?

Some banks offer cashback to their customers (often those with mortgages) to help them make energy efficiency improvements to their homes. Find more information on the Heat Geek website. 

How to apply

Check with your bank for eligibility requirements and how to apply.

Unsure what you’re eligible for? We can help