Written by Kate Hallewell
East Sussex County Council has a flexible, helpful policy on the matter and they will help residents apply for ECO grants if they are interested in seeking out grant assistance from an Energy Company Obligation (ECO) grant program. The council debates some detailed guidelines to show you how you can install insulation or upgrade your heating system with their support should one be looking at applying for an Eco Grant offered by them.
1. What is Local Authority Flexible Energy or LA Flex?
In the ECO program, you can reduce your carbon emissions and tackle fuel poverty. By lowering the consumption of electricity through simple steps like switching off lights when they are not needed or changing to more efficient appliances, this measure will help lower your bill. You’re already on an easy path towards saving money!
The East Sussex County Council has published a guide called Statement of Intent. This document will allow councils to create guidelines for what grants they are going after, so less time is spent on figuring out eligibility requirements and more energy can be put into completing applications!
2. What grants are available?
The types of grants available to residents living in the East Sussex County Council area include:
- Air source heat pump grants
- Boiler grants
- Boiler grants
- Cavity wall insulation grants
- External wall insulation grants
- First time central heating grants
- Internal wall insulation grants
- Loft Insulation
- Roof Insulation
3. Who is eligible for grants?
Are you a homeowner, housing association tenant or private renter? Whatever your situation is this grant may just be the answer to all of your home improvement needs. The easiest way to see if you are eligible is to use our eligibility checker here.
Eligibility
There are 6 ways to qualify for a grant:
1. Receiving a qualifying benefit
2. Receiving Child Benefit and meeting income rules
3. Income-based eligibility (for households that earn less than £31,000 per year)
4. Vulnerable eligibility
5. Health-related eligibility
6. Bespoke targeting
This route to eligibility applies where a member of the household receives or has received a 'qualifying benefit'. If the benefit isn't a current claim (for example for households where they have gone back to work after the pandemic) providing the benefit has been claimed at some point within the last 12 months, the household will still be eligible for a grant.
Qualifying benefits include:
- Child Tax Credit
- Employment & Support Allowance (Income Based) - Income Support
- Housing Benefit
- Jobseekers Allowance (Income Based)
- Pension Credit Guarantee Credit
- Pension Credit Savings Credit
- Universal Credit
- Working Tax Credit
Note if you receive any of the following benefits you could qualify later in the scheme (or through the ECO4 Flex routes). We advise anyone claiming the following benefits to register for updates so you are the first to know when these benefits are accepted.
- Armed Forces Independence Payment
- Attendance Allowance
- Carer's Allowance
- Constant Attendance Allowance
- Disability Living Allowance (DLA)
- Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit
- Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
- War Pensions Mobility Supplement
If you receive Child Benefit you could be eligible for the scheme but unlike the qualifying benefits above they would need to meet an additional income criteria.
The Child Benefit income criteria depends on the number of children in the household and also whether the claim is a single or joint claim.
The income limits are as follows:
Single parents
1 Child – £19,900
2 Children – £24,800
3 Children – £29,600
4+ Children – £34,500
Parents in a couple
1 Child – £27,500
2 Children – £32,300
3 Children – £37,200
4+ Children – £42,000
(figures updated to Ofgem’s Administration Consultation released on 13 June 2022)
If you are eligible through the Child Benefit route you should apply as soon as you can. The Government's Green Homes Grant excluded Child Benefit recipients so potentially this eligibility route could be removed later in the the scheme.
To be eligible through the income-based route your annual household income will need to be under £31,000. You will need to provide evidence such as bank statements and income information to confirm eligibility.
This is an ECO4 Flex route so it requires the applicants council to have published a Statement of Intent and to issue eligibility declarations.
Vulnerable people can access grants if they meet two of the following criteria (1 & 3 can’t be used together):
1. Lives in a Lower Super Output Area
2. Receives Council Tax Rebate (excluding for single person discounts)
3. Householder has a disability, mental health condition, is over 65, school children or under 16 and pregnant women.
4. Receives free school meals due to a low income
5. Supported by a Council scheme described in a Statement of Intent
6. Households referred by a Citizen’s advice as struggling to pay gas and electricity bills
7. Households in energy debt
A medical practitioner will need to complete a referral form to confirm eligibility.
This is an ECO4 Flex route so it requires the applicants council to have published a Statement of Intent and to issue eligibility declarations.
People with health conditions that are made worse by living in a cold home qualify.
These include:
- Cardiovascular diseases
- Immunosuppressed
- Mobility issues
- Respiratory conditions
A medical practitioner will need to complete a referral form to confirm eligibility.
This is an ECO4 Flex route so it requires the applicants council to have published a Statement of Intent and to issue eligibility declarations.
Installers can target specific groups of people living in fuel poverty. Installers will approach you if your property is eligible through this route.
East Sussex County Council
If you DON'T claim benefits, the criteria for identifying households in fuel poverty in East Sussex County Council are as follows:
| BN1 |
| BN10 |
| BN2 |
| BN20 |
| BN21 |
| BN22 |
| BN23 |
| BN24 |
| BN25 |
| BN26 |
| BN27 |
| BN3 |
| BN4 |
| BN41 |
| BN42 |
| BN45 |
| BN50 |
| BN51 |
| BN52 |
| BN6 |
| BN7 |
| BN8 |
| BN88 |
| BN9 |
| RH15 |
| RH16 |
| RH17 |
| RH18 |
| RH19 |
| TN18 |
| TN19 |
| TN2 |
| TN20 |
| TN21 |
| TN22 |
| TN3 |
| TN31 |
| TN32 |
| TN33 |
| TN34 |
| TN35 |
| TN36 |
| TN37 |
| TN38 |
| TN39 |
| TN40 |
| TN5 |
| TN6 |
| TN7 |
| TN8 |
5. How much could you get?
Your installation value will depend on the type and size of your home. It is important to understand that different materials cost more or less depending on whether they are standard construction materials versus speciality items like radiant barriers for example. The calculations also take into account other factors such as how many people live in a house and bedroom count; this way you can feel confident that when you get quotes from our approved contractors it won’t matter if one contractor offers better pricing than another because we’re taking care of finding out what works best with your budget too.
The grants are currently available as follows (subject to survey and meeting eligibility rules):
East Sussex County Council flexible energy (LA Flex) rules are detailed in this Statement of Intent
Apply for a grant
Check eligibility for grants
Fill in the short form to see if you are eligible for Government grants.