Written by Kate Hallewell
The Greater Manchester Combined Authority has made it possible for you to install insulation or upgrade your heating while earning ECO grant funding from the government.
An application must be submitted and a set of rules have been published by the council which will allow you to apply as well!
1. What is Local Authority Flexible Energy or LA Flex?
2. What grants are available?
The types of grants available to residents living in the Greater Manchester Combined Authority area include:
- Boiler grants
- Cavity wall insulation grants
- External wall insulation grants
- First time central heating grants
- Internal wall insulation grants
- Loft Insulation
- Roof Insulation
- Smart thermostat grants
- Underfloor insulation grants
Boiler grants are expected to be removed from the grant scheme in the next phase so you should apply for this grant as soon as possible.
3. Who is eligible for grants?
Renters, homeowners and living in a housing association have a great chance for the grant. 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.
Greater Manchester Combined Authority
If you DON'T claim benefits, the criteria for identifying households in fuel poverty in Greater Manchester Combined Authority are as follows:
Criteria for Greater Manchester Combined Authority eligible households
Income and Health
Low income (e.g. in receipt of income-related benefits, see below for a full list of benefits*, or a monthly income of less than £800 after paying mortgage or rent);
- High energy costs (e.g. inadequate insulation or inefficient heating or energy bills of more than £1,400 per year if the property was heated adequately);
- A household member of any age with a disability or long-term health condition that results in Asthma, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Coronary Heart Disease, Depression, Falls, Hypertension, Stroke or Transient Ischaemic Attack (TIA). See the full list of eligible illnesses and vulnerabilities.
- If the resident meets the above and wishes to have an ‘A’ rated boiler they will require a letter from their GP to confirm their illness, and the resident would also sign a self-declaration form.
Low Income
Where the Council has reasonable evidence that the total household income fits into the categories in the table
Health Conditions
- Cardiovascular condition (incl. coronary heart disease, stroke, hypertension, transient ischemic attack)
- Respiratory condition (incl. COPD, asthma)
- Neurological or neurobiological condition (incl. dementia, Parkinson’s disease, MS, epilepsy, fibromyalgia, ME)
- Musculoskeletal conditions (incl. arthritis, limited mobility, recently attended hospital due to a fall)
- Blood conditions (incl. Sickle cell disease, thalassemia)
- Cancer
- Moderate to severe mental illness (incl. schizophrenia bipolar disorder and depression were receiving regular treatment)
- Severe learning disabilities
- Autoimmune or immunodeficiency diseases (incl. lupus, diabetes, HIV)
- Terminally ill
- Other illness exacerbated by cold (confirmed by GP)
- Vulnerability
- On the Priority Services register of partner supplier
- Core Group WHD recipient
- Victim of domestic violence
- Recent bereavement
- Moving in and out of homelessness
- Recent immigrant or asylum seeker
- Physical or sensory disability
- Solid wall insulation “in-fill” projects
Aberdeen City Council Energy Company (ECO) Eligibility
| Question | Response | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Was the home built before 1983? | Yes | 10 |
| No | -5 | |
| Is the home of a non-traditional construction e.g. solid wall? | Yes | 8 |
| No | -4 | |
| What type of home is it? | Detached | 4 |
| Semi-detached | 2 | |
| End terrace | 2 | |
| Mid terrace | 0 | |
| What is the main heating fuel? | Gas | -10 |
| Electricity | 0 | |
| Oil or other fuel | 8 | |
| Does the property have three bedrooms or less? | Yes | 6 |
| No | -2 | |
| Does at least one member of the household spend most of the day in the home? | Yes | 4 |
| No | 0 |
| BL0 |
| BL1 |
| BL11 |
| BL2 |
| BL3 |
| BL4 |
| BL5 |
| BL6 |
| BL7 |
| BL78 |
| BL8 |
| BL9 |
| M1 1 |
| M1 2 |
| M1 3 |
| M1 4 |
| M1 5 |
| M1 6 |
| M1 7 |
| M1 9 |
| M10 |
| M11 |
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| M14 |
| M15 |
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| M19 |
| M2 1 |
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| M2 7 |
| M2 9 |
| M20 |
| M21 |
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| M25 |
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| M3 1 |
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| M3 9 |
| M30 |
| M31 |
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| M34 |
| M35 |
| M38 |
| M4 1 |
| M4 2 |
| M4 3 |
| M4 4 |
| M4 5 |
| M4 6 |
| M4 7 |
| M40 |
| M41 |
| M43 |
| M44 |
| M45 |
| M46 |
| M5 0 |
| M5 2 |
| M5 3 |
| M5 4 |
| M5 5 |
| M50 |
| M52 |
| M6 5 |
| M6 6 |
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| M6 8 |
| M60 |
| M61 |
| M7 0 |
| M7 1 |
| M7 2 |
| M7 3 |
| M7 4 |
| M7 9 |
| M8 0 |
| M8 1 |
| M8 2 |
| M8 4 |
| M8 5 |
| M8 6 |
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| M8 9 |
| M9 0 |
| M9 1 |
| M9 2 |
| M9 3 |
| M9 4 |
| M9 5 |
| M9 6 |
| M9 7 |
| M9 8 |
| M9 9 |
| M90 |
| M99 |
| OL1 |
| OL10 |
| OL11 |
| OL12 |
| OL14 |
| OL15 |
| OL16 |
| OL2 |
| OL3 |
| OL4 |
| OL5 |
| OL6 |
| OL7 |
| OL8 |
| OL9 |
| OL95 |
| SK1 |
| SK10 |
| SK12 |
| SK13 |
| SK14 |
| SK15 |
| SK16 |
| SK2 |
| SK22 |
| SK3 |
| SK4 |
| SK5 |
| SK6 |
| SK7 |
| SK8 |
| SK9 |
| WA12 |
| WA13 |
| WA14 |
| WA15 |
| WA3 |
| WN1 |
| WN2 |
| WN3 |
| WN4 |
| WN5 |
| WN6 |
| WN7 |
Eligibility does not guarantee funding. For full details see the full Statement of Intent.
5. How much could you get?
The amount of money you get can depend on the heating on your property. The Ofgem rules place an emphasis on existing, or previous heating when calculating a lifetime savings calculation which provides installers with a funding value to give you what you need. Heating and other key information such as wall type and the number of bedrooms are used to work out how much grant will be available.
The grants are currently available as follows (subject to survey and meeting eligibility rules):
- Boiler grants - this could give you 25% - 75% off the RRP of installing a new boiler
- Cavity wall insulation grants - up to 100% of the installation cost
- External wall insulation grants - up to 100% of the installation cost (only available where electric is the main heating source)
- First time central heating grants - 50-100% of the installation cost (propeties must not have previously had central heating)
- Internal wall insulation grants- up to 100% of the installation cost (only available where electric is the main heating source)
- Loft Insulation - up to 100% of the installation cost (usually only available where electric is the main heating source but in some areas loft insulation is available for gas properties)
- Roof Insulation - up to 100% of the installation cost (usually only available where electric is the main heating source but in some areas roof insulation is available for gas properties where it is installed alongside a new boiler)
- Smart thermostat grants - up to 100% of the cost but only available through some installers
- Underfloor insulation grants - up to 100% of the installation cost but usually only installed alongside another measure like a boiler upgrade
The grant is given to the registered installer, without repayment. They’ll be happy to explain this upfront and provide an estimate as they can do so with no questions asked. If you want a cost breakdown before installation, ask your installer about it – all while making sure there are never any hidden fees or costs on top too! A free survey will tell if any grants available that cover your needs.
Greater Manchester Combined Authority 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.