The Warm Front Scheme

You may be more familiar with the Warm Front boiler grant that is available as part of the HomeFront heating and insulation improvement scheme. The idea of this scheme is to provide funding to homes with the poorest levels of insulation with the least cost effective methods of heating.

You can get a grant of up to £6,000 to cover the cost of energy efficient home improvement including cavity wall insulation, loft insulation, draught proofing, water tank and pipe insulation and more energy efficient heating systems. This is not to be confused with the Renewable Heat Incentive or the Green Deal which also provide grants and loans for energy efficient home improvements.

How do I qualify for a grant?

Not everyone will qualify under the scheme, the eligibility criteria was last changed in April 2011 and generally only covers people who are in receipt of certain types of benefit. So if you are getting pension credit, an employment or support allowance such as jobseekers or income support. The criteria is quite specific but you can find out more on the governments warm front site which also explains how to apply.

What if I don't qualify, can I still get help?

Whilst you may not qualify for a grant under the Warm Front scheme you can still get a full or partial grant to insulate and draught proof your home. Making your home more energy efficient not only reduces your heating bills and make your home feel warmer but you are also helping to reduce the amount of carbon that is released into the atmosphere.

Boiler scrappage scheme

Whilst the governments official boiler scrappage scheme has ended you can still qualify for similar schemes run by some of the energy companies. You can get up to £400 towards the cost of a new boiler although you have to have buy the boiler and have it fitted by the energy company you get the boiler grant from. Some of the energy suppliers running schemes include British Gas, Npower and Scottish and Southern.

Although a grant may look attractive make sure that you get quotes from other local gas boiler installers. Energy companies tend to be more expensive than smaller local firms and so you might find that it is actually a cheaper to go local to get a new boiler than it is to get the grant and use your energy company.