The Great British Insulation Scheme is a government energy-efficiency scheme (formerly known as ECO+) administered by Ofgem. It is designed to deliver improvements to home energy-efficiency and help reduce energy bills.
The scheme complements the Energy Company Obligation (ECO4) scheme, but unlike ECO4’s ‘whole house’ approach, this scheme will mostly deliver single insulation measures.
As well as supporting low-income and vulnerable households, it is also available to those living in homes with an energy performance certificate rating of D to G, and within council tax bands A to D in England and A to E in Scotland and Wales.
The scheme works by placing an obligation on medium and large energy companies to deliver measures that result in reduced energy usage. The scheme began in April 2023 and is scheduled to end in April 2026.
Can my home benefit from the Great British Insulation Scheme?
To qualify, your property must require energy-efficiency upgrades such as cavity wall insulation or loft insulation. The scheme will deliver one insulation measure per home, and upgrades are decided through a retrofit assessment which looks at how making changes to your property could cut energy use and reduce carbon dioxide emissions. In some cases, secondary measures, such as room thermostats or boiler programmers, are available for households.
This works by your energy supplier matching you with an assessor who will visit your home and decide on the type of measure required. You must also either own your own home or have permission from your landlord – this includes if the property is owned by a social housing provider or management company.
What types of insulation could I have installed under the scheme?
cavity wall (including party wall)
loft
solid wall
pitched roof
flat roof
under-floor
solid floor
park home
room-in-roof
Where an eligible insulation measure is installed in owner-occupied premises in the low-income group, certain heating controls, such as room thermostats, would also be allowed, as a secondary measure.
Higher-cost measures, such as solid wall insulation may need a contribution from the household, however, it is up to the energy companies to determine which retrofit projects they choose to fund, the level of funding they provide, and the retrofit coordinator or installers they choose to work with.
The level of funding will depend on the measures type, and a number of other factors. In some cases, you may be asked to contribute to the cost of the installation. Different companies or installers may provide different levels or types of support towards the installation of energy-efficiency or heating controls.
You can use any of the energy suppliers who are obligated to take part in the scheme. To find out how they may be able to help you benefit, even if they are not your energy provider call Nice Heating on 0800 8654498 or go to our Contact Us page to send us your details and we will call you.