Residents across Torbay who are on a low income can now benefit from free energy efficiency improvements worth up to £10,000 from the Green Homes Grants Scheme.

Torbay is one of the areas receiving a share of a multi-million pound Government funded programme, led by West of England Combined Authority, working with E.ON and Happy Energy Solutions.

This grant means owner occupiers who are on benefits or earn under £30,000 a year will benefit from energy efficiency installations up to the value of £10,000 with nothing to pay towards the costs of the works. Tenants of rented properties can also access grants of up to £5,000 for energy efficiency upgrades, but the landlord will be expected to contribute at least one third towards the cost of works.

What will be funded by the grant will vary for each resident’s home, but may include for example loft and cavity wall insulation. For those that meet the criteria, submit an application at Heat Devon to find out what is available.

Councillor Mike Morey, Cabinet Member for Infrastructure, Environment and Culture said: “It is great news to hear that our residents can be helped to save money on their fuel bills through installing a range of free energy saving measures. Finding ways for our residents to be part of our Torbay wide goal of making Torbay Carbon Neutral by 2030 is also important to us and this scheme will help to reduce the amount of carbon that comes from our homes.”

Nigel Dewbery, Director of Residential Solutions at E.ON, said: “We’re really pleased to be working with the South West Energy Hub to give eligible residents the opportunity to install a range of energy efficiency measures on their properties.

“This demonstrates E.ON’s commitment to helping improve the energy efficiency of housing across the UK and reducing individual homeowners’ impact on the environment, all helping to support our net-zero targets.”

Who is eligible?

To be eligible for the grants the residents of the property must have a low income (receive benefits or have the household income below £30,000 per annum) and the EPC for the property must be rated D, E, F or G. If there is no EPC for your property, you can still apply and it doesn’t matter who your energy supplier is.

What do I do if I think I qualify?

If you’re struggling to keep your home warm and you think you might be eligible for some help, you can submit an application at the following website address: www.heatdevon.co.uk 

How long is the scheme running for?

The scheme is expected to run until March 2022, but will operate on a first-come, first-served basis.

What will happen if I do qualify?

If you qualify, Happy Energy Solutions will survey your home to assess which energy efficiency measures could be installed.

The options will then be discussed with you for a final decision to be reached.

Case Study

78 year old Mr K was the first to benefit from the scheme. In receipt of Pension Credits and with health problems made worse by the cold, he lived in a well-insulated bungalow, but the only form of heating was electric panel heaters that were very expensive to run. Mr K’s energy bills were £126 per month, despite only heating one room in his home. Paying his energy bills had become totally unaffordable.

Happy Energy Solutions, managers of HEAT Project, arranged for the installation of an Air Source Heat Pump central heating system and Solar PV, all of which were covered by the grants! The heat pump was grant funded under the Government’s Green Homes Grants Local Authority Delivery programme and the Solar PV was funded with a grant through the Energy Company Obligation (ECO).

The EPC rating of the property has now improved from an F to a B to reflect the significant reduction in the household energy bills. Mr K’s energy bills have reduced by an estimated £472 per year and a total of 3.1 tonnes of CO2 have been saved each year.

If you feel you qualify for this grant you can submit an application at www.heatdevon.co.uk