Middle-income households ‘will get £15,000 Government grants to make homes more energy efficient’

Middle-income households ‘will get £15,000 Government grants to make their homes more energy efficient’: Ministers to announce plan to fund insulation and smart radiator controls

  • Middle-income homes could get £15,000 to make energy efficiency savings
  • The ‘eco plus’ fund will be announced by Business Secretary Grant Shapps
  • It will go towards smart heating controls, as well as loft and cavity wall insulation 
  • A total of £1billion will be given to people able to contribute to building costs

Middle-income households could be given up to £15,000 to make their homes more energy efficient under Government plans.

Business Secretary Grant Shapps is set to announce a new £1billion fund, called ‘eco plus’, which will help homeowners who are able to contribute to the cost of the works. 

The Government already has schemes in place to pay for energy efficiency improvements for low-income homes as it looks to help billpayers save money amid soaring energy prices.

The new plans will help eligible households fund the installation of loft and cavity wall insulation, as well as smart heating controls such as advanced thermostats and thermostatic valves, according to The Times.

Business Secretary Grant Shapps is set to announce the ‘eco plus’ fund

Energy efficiencies funded by the scheme could save households hundreds of pounds a year. Pictured: A file photo of a smart radiator valve

Energy efficiencies funded by the scheme could save households hundreds of pounds a year. Pictured: A file photo of a smart radiator valve

The paper reports it will cover more than 70,000 homes and save hundreds of pounds a year – loft insulation alone can save £640 a year, paying back the £1,100 installation price in just two years.

Ministers will consider plans to make the money available to those in council tax bands A to D for the next three years from April, with 75 per cent of any upgrade costs potentially being met.

The funding will be administered by energy suppliers, unlike the green homes grant that was axed last year.

Smart heating controls such as thermostatic valves and advanced thermostats can cost up to £800 but save households £525 a year.

Smart heating controls could also be covered under the new scheme. Pictured: An advanced thermostat

Smart heating controls could also be covered under the new scheme. Pictured: An advanced thermostat

The scheme could contribute thousands of pounds to install loft insulation in middle-income households

The scheme could contribute thousands of pounds to install loft insulation in middle-income households

In addition to the hundreds of pounds saved by loft insulation, cavity wall insulation can cost up to £2,500 but save £525 a year.

The funding is part of plans set to be announced by the Government in an attempt to cut household energy use by 15 per cent by 2030.

It was previously reported that Cabinet was preparing to launch a public information campaign at a cost of £25million to encourage the public to use less energy.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt previously said people would be joining a ‘national mission’ to reduce ‘energy dependency on what [Vladimir] Putin chooses to do’.