Thousands of homes across Liverpool city region could be eligible to apply to a £28.5m fund for free energy-saving measures such as insulation, heat pumps or solar panels. Tony McDonough reports
Around 2,500 homes across Liverpool city region may be eligible to apply for free energy-saving measures paid for from a £28.5m fund.
Secured from the Government, the Sustainable Warmth Fund is available to households in Liverpool, Wirral, Sefton, Knowsley, Halton and St Helens. It can fund measures including insulation, low carbon heating, heat pumps and solar panels
Those applying must have annual incomes below £30,000. They must also live in low Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rated homes (those with E, F or G ratings, although some band D properties may be eligible).
Residents in Halton, Knowsley, St Helens, and Wirral, can apply for the scheme through Everwarm’s website by clicking here. Liverpool and Sefton residents must apply through their respective council websites.
Liverpool City Region Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram, said: “With the country in the throes of a cost-of-living crisis, I want to do everything I can to help ease the impact on people’s household bills.
“Due to their age, many of the homes in our region are energy inefficient, which is contributing to soaring bills. I want to ensure that local families can affordably heat their homes without heating the planet too. We are already making a start on turning that vision into a reality.
“To date, we’re investing around £60m to ‘retrofit’ more than 5,500 homes with energy efficient updates, which is already helping to save struggling families money on their bills.
“But I know that this funding is just a drop in the ocean. There are 700,000 homes across the Liverpool city region and, while £60m is a massive investment, we are only scratching the surface of what we need – and want – to do.”
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Funding is available for owner-occupied and private rented homes. Eligible owner-occupiers do not need to contribute anything to the financial cost of the works. For private rented properties, landlords must contribute at least a third of the total cost of the works to the home. All work will be completed by March 2023.
Cllr Graham Morgan, Liverpool City Region Combined Authority Portfolio Holder for Housing and Spatial Framework, added: “There are 720,000 homes in the city region and more than 60% of them are at EPC band D and below. This means they are wasteful and expensive to keep warm.
“I’d encourage people to take advantage of this funding but we need Government to pick up the pace so we can roll these programmes out even more quickly.”