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Home energy efficiency

Residential emissions are responsible 30% of Chichester districts emissions. 15% of these come from gas for heating our homes and cooking, 8% comes from electricity used in the home and 7% of emissions come from 'other' sources. Therefore, improving home energy efficiency will help us to drastically cut carbon emissions. It will also help ensure that homes are warmer and waste less energy, which should make them more affordable to heat and cool.

We have over 57,000 homes in our district, and we can assume that the nearly all homes will need some energy efficiency improvements measures. We hope the information provided helps you get started.

How to get started with home energy efficiency improvements 

  1. Find out whether you are eligible for a grant by clicking on the link that best fits your household. 
  2. If eligible for grants, you can find out more details and how to apply by clicking on the relevant grants in the Grants and Schemes Summary section. 
  3. If you are not eligible for grants you may find it useful to get a Whole House Retrofit plan. This can provide specific advice on what you can do to make your house more energy efficient, how much it is likely to cost and how to find trusted installers to do the work. 
  4. Find out more about different home energy efficiency measures, such as insulation, heat pumps and solar. We recommend visiting Energy saving trust - energy at home (opens new window) which offers guides on home energy efficiency. It explains different things you can do, what they are and how much money they can save you.
  5. You can also find out more information on the West Sussex Affordable Energy (opens new window) website.
  6. Check out our handy leaflet which summarises the grants and schemes to help with home energy efficiency  Energy grants leaflet (Word doc) [871KB]
  7. You can also use the Government's new home energy efficiency tool (opens new window) to learn more about measures that are suitable for your home and whether you are eligible for grants to help install them. 

I am a homeowner - the annual household income is below £31,000

If the total annual income of all working adults in your household is less than £31,000, or you are in receipt of a means-tested benefit, you may be eligible for the following grants and support to help make your home energy efficient:

  • Energy Company Obligation (ECO) grant
  • Great British Insulation Scheme
  • Warmer Homes (Home Upgrade Grant - HUG) - only available for homes that do not use gas for heating.
  • Chichester Warm Homes Initiative

To find out more see our Grants and Schemes Summary section. You may also be eligible for free support and advice. Please visit Help with energy bills for a list of organisations that can help.

I am a homeowner - the annual household income is above £31,000

If the total annual income of all working adults in your household is over £31,000* and you are not eligible for full grants, you may wish to consider the following:

  • The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is a government grant which provides financial support towards installation of a heat pump when replacing a gas boiler.
  • The new Great British Insulation Scheme can provide free or reduced cost insulation to properties in council tax bands A-D.
  • Solar Together is a group buying scheme for renewable solar panels.
  • Whole House Retrofit plan can provide specific advice on what you can do to make your house more energy efficient.

To find out more see our Grants and Schemes Summary section.

Some grants have a scale of income eligibility depending on the number of dependent children, so if you have 3 or more children it may be worth enquiring if your household income is above this level.

I am landlord or tenant

Landlords are required by law to ensure their rental properties have an energy performance certificate rating of at least EChichester District Council has a Landlord Accreditation Scheme to provide support and recognise landlords meeting standards relating to the condition and management of their properties.

If you live in privately rented properties: 

  • Landlords can get funding towards installation of a heat pump when replacing gas boilers through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme.
  • If the tenant meets low-income eligibility criteria, landlords may also be eligible for the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) grant or the Warmer Homes Home Upgrade Grant (if the property does not use gas for heating). Please note that landlords with a property portfolio of more than 4 houses are not eligible for the Warmer Homes Home Upgrade Grant.
  • Landlords are usually required to contribute to up to 50% of costs. However, the grants can make a significant contribution towards installing measures which will make your property more energy efficient.
  • Both the landlord and tenant need to give permission and provide evidence that the eligibility criteria are met.

If you live in social housing:

  • Contact your housing provider to find out what they are doing to make their properties more energy efficient.
  • You won't be eligible for most of the grants listed on this page because the government has a separate grant for social housing providers.
  • However, you may be eligible for the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) grant if your rent is above the market rate. In this case it would be considered as private-rented sector and you or the landlord may be required to contribute 50% of costs.
     

If you live in a shared ownership property:

  • If you do not have responsibility for maintenance of your property, you will not be eligible for most grants. However, you may be eligible for the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) grant if your rent is above the market rate. In this case it would be considered as private-rented sector and you or the landlord may be required to contribute 50% of costs.
  • If you are responsible for maintenance of your property, you may be eligible for some of the grants listed on this page - please enquire directly to the contact details provided for each grant/ scheme for further clarification.

To find out more about each grant see our Grants and Schemes Summary section.

I have received a letter or phone call - is it a scam?

We work with partners who may send letters to eligible households to promote grants. Any letter from one of our partners will include the Chichester District Council logo. Council staff will never telephone residents directly to offer grants or sell anything. 

If you receive a letter directly from an installer they are likely to be promoting the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) Scheme. To deliver this scheme they must be working in partnership with an energy company or be registered with the National Energy Foundation's installer list. We recommend you ask what energy supplier they are working with and you can check that by contacting the energy supplier directly. To find energy supplier contact details see Ofgem's list of energy suppliers. (opens new window). To check if they are on the National Energy Foundation installer list please contact the Citizens Advice West Sussex Energy Team on 0800 145 6879. 

The council recommends that anyone looking for, or approached by, installers to do work on their home check that the company is registered with TrustMark (opens new window), which is a Government Endorsed Quality Scheme for work carried out in or around your home. We also recommend that anyone looking to install renewable energy (heat pumps or solar panels) checks that any company is registered with the MCS Accreditation Scheme (opens new window). If you are looking for companies to provide insulation in your home they should be registered with the National Insulation Association (NIA) (opens new window). Companies registered with these schemes have been vetted and meet high industry standards.

Home energy efficiency grants and schemes

Most grants require that the property has a valid Energy Performance Certificate (EPC). When a house is built, rented or sold it must have an EPC. This gives information on how energy efficient the building is and has a rating from A, which is most efficient, to G which is least efficient.

You can check your home's EPC rating here on the Government's find a energy certificate service (opens new window). If your property does not have an EPC but you are eligible for a grant, the administrator of the scheme will usually arrange for an EPC assessment to be undertaken on your property to check the building meets the eligibility criteria. 

If you need help completing any application or enquiry forms, please contact the Citizens Advice Energy Advice Service (opens new window).


ECO4 Flex and Great British Insulation Scheme Statement of Intent 

Chichester District Council works in partnership with other councils in West Sussex to deliver the Energy Company Obligation and Great British Insualtion schemes. The Statement of Intent sets out the council's flexible eligibility criteria for the Energy Company Obligation (ECO4) scheme from April 2022 to March 2026 and the Great British Insulation Scheme until March 2026. You can view the ECO4 and Great British Insulation Scheme Statement of Intent (opens new window)