Guest Blog

The Green Homes Grant

Our first guest blog is from Home & Maker (more about them at the end) who highlight how the new Green Homes Grant can help home improvements projects. Without further ado:

Want a Government grant for a home improvement project? Here’s how…

Hopefully we all want to reduce our environmental impact – its’ a sobering fact that 40% of UK carbon emissions come from our homes. Homeowners can all do their bit: renovating a home is an ideal opportunity not only to create space that works for them, but can also to help their pockets and the planet by addressing their home’s carbon footprint. Now, with the Government’s new Green Homes Grant scheme, homeowners can make a renovation project budget go even further, while adding value to the home and bringing running costs down.

Benefits for homeowners

Benefits for homeowners

Straight-forward energy-saving measures can have a dramatic effect on a home’s comfort levels and energy bills: the Energy Saving Trust estimates that a typical 3-bed semi-detached house can save up to £250 per year simply by upgrading insulation. With older houses, where there is often a trade-off between period character and energy efficiency, the benefits can be even greater.

What is the Green Homes Grant?

What is the Green Homes Grant?

The new Green Homes Grant provides homeowners with vouchers worth up to £5,000 (or £10,000 for low-income households) to help cover two-thirds of the cost of energy efficiency or low carbon heating improvements. Vouchers must be used to install at least one of the following primary measures:

  • Solid wall, under floor or cavity wall insulation
  • Loft, flat roof or room in roof insulation
  • Air or ground source heat pump
  • Solar thermal
  • Biomass boilers

For example, if the cost of installing floor insulation is £1000, then the scheme will provide applicants with a voucher for around £666, leaving homeowners to pay only the remaining £334. It’s a great way to bring energy costs down, while saving a lot of money that could be spent elsewhere on a renovation project, thus helping budgets or specifications stretch further. With more expensive measures such as air source heat pumps where the benefits can be substantial but the up-front costs can be challenging, the scheme is an excellent way to make major changes affordable.

If at least one of these primary measures, the scheme can also be used to fund further secondary measures including:

  • Draught proofing
  • Double/triple glazing
  • Secondary glazing
  • External energy efficient doors
  • Heating controls
  • Hot water tank thermostats and insulation

Any home renovation project should really be used to look at a home in the round – including energy demands and running costs. It’s also sensible to install energy-saving measures or technology during a renovation project to minimise disruption to your home life. The Green Homes Grant is therefore a very welcome initiative, that can be used as part of any wider renovation project to save time, costs and carbon.

Interested? Find out more

Interested? Find out more

There is more information about the Green Homes Grant – which runs to 31 March 2021 – at www.gov.uk. Home & Maker can help homeowners make the most of the scheme by helping them plan a renovation project that addresses their home needs and lifestyle, as well as future home maintenance costs. Our team are ready to talk to people now, so that together they can help homeowners make the very most of your homes.

Wake up in your dream home

Wake up in your dream home

Home & Maker is a unique online architectural service, connecting homeowners to great designers and putting them in the driving seat. From small-scale home renovations and extensions to new builds, Home & Maker supports homeowners through the design and planning process, and helps them realise their home vision through a transparent pay-as-you-go service and supportive aftercare. Find out more at www.homeandmaker.com

Date Published: 12 Oct 2020

View our Sector Brochures

Thanks for signing up.

We’ll be in touch shortly.