Written by Kate Hallewell
The Liverpool City Council is offering an energy grant program for residents who want to install insulation or upgrade their heating. The rules are clear, and it will be easy as pie!
1. What is Local Authority Flexible Energy or LA Flex?
The local authority’s innovative energy program is a way for those living on low income and struggling with the cold to get free heaters installed! You can also receive grants from your council.
Are you interested in making improvements around your home come springtime? The Liverpool City Council recently published their eligibility rules for the grant scheme, which could be just what you need. Check out these energy-efficient programs now and see if this is something that would work well with one another!
2. What grants are available?
The types of grants available to residents living in the Liverpool City Council 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
3. Who is eligible for grants?
Are you renting, owning your home, or living in a housing association? The Government is providing help with insulating homes. 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.
Liverpool City Council
If you DON'T claim benefits, the criteria for identifying households in fuel poverty in Liverpool City Council are as follows:
Criteria for Liverpool City Council eligible households
Fuel Poverty
- Living in an EPC Band C or less efficient property, in accordance with the
Government’s Fuel Poverty Strategy
Vulnerable to Cold
- On a combined household income of less than £31,920
- people with cardiovascular conditions;
- people with respiratory conditions;
- people with disabilities;
- people with mental health conditions or learning difficulties that reduce
individual’s ability to self-care (including dementia); - older people (65 and older);
- households with young children (from new-born to school age);
- pregnant women;
- People with pre-existing chronic medical conditions such as, but not limited to diabetes, stroke, suppressed immune system, terminally ill;
- People who are housebound or otherwise low mobility;
- Families with school-age children;
- People assessed as being at risk of or having had recurrent falls.
- Children under 5;
- Older people 85 and over;
- Pregnant women;
- Terminally ill
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5. How much could you get?
The amount of the grant depends on a range of factors. One thing that’s certain, though? You’re going to need some money set aside for installation!
The process is quite complicated and involves taking into account your current or previous heating system in addition to wall type, number of bedrooms you have as well other key information – all these things affect how much energy efficiency upgrades will save over time which provides installers with funding values they can use during negotiations later down the line
The amount you get could also be dependent on where you live and whether a grant is available. This often depends in part to see if there are any installers nearby that can help with the project.
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 paid directly to the Registered Installer, which means you can use it in a variety of ways. Plus no repayment or interest rates are required if there’s any questions before installation from how much funding will be available and additional costs after receiving an initial quote for our cost by your installer; they’ll come prepared with quick survey answers at hand!
Liverpool City Council flexible energy (LA Flex) rules are detailed in this Statement of Intent
A full list of all local authority flexible energy rules can be found on the gov.uk website
Apply for a grant
Check eligibility for grants
Fill in the short form to see if you are eligible for Government grants.