Energy efficiency grants

Statement of Intent

This statement sets out Nuneaton and Bedworth and North Warwickshire Council’s flexible eligibility criteria for the Energy Company Obligation (ECO4) and Great British Insulation schemes which run until March 2026.

The ECO4 scheme will focus on supporting low income and vulnerable households. The scheme will improve the least energy efficient homes helping to meet the Government’s fuel poverty and net zero commitments. The Great British Insulation Scheme will support the ECO4 scheme in the delivery of predominantly single measures targeted at a wider range of households.

The flexible approach for Local Authorities (LAs) to identifying fuel poor and vulnerable households who may benefit from heating and energy saving measures is referred to as “ECO4 Flex” and “Great British Insulation Scheme Flex”.

The Council is publishing this Statement of Intent (SoI), on the 28 November 2023 to confirm that each of the households declared will adhere to at least one of the four routes below

Route 1

Must have the following:

  • EPC Rating D, E, F, or G owner-occupied households (or E-G for privately rented households)
  • household incomes less than £31,000

Route 2

To qualify through Route 2, households must live in a home with an EPC rating of E, F or G and meet any two of the following proxy criteria:

  • Home is located in Lower-layer Super Output Area 1-3, you can check if your post code is eligible here
  • Householder(s) receives a Council Tax reduction (rebates based on low income only, excludes single person rebates).
  • A householder is vulnerable to living in a cold home as identified in the NICE Guidance (only one from the list can be used, excludes the proxy 'low income')
    1. Characteristics/Conditions Which Make People Vulnerable to the Cold
    2. people with cardiovascular conditions
    3. people with respiratory conditions (in particular, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and childhood asthma)
    4. people with mental health conditions
    5. people with disabilities
    6. older people (65 years and older)
    7. households with young children (new-born to school age)
    8. pregnant women

Source: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE Quality Statement and Guidance 2015 On Excess Winter Deaths And Illness Caused BV Cold

  • A child living at the property receives free school meals due to low income.
  • A householder is supported by a Local Authority-run scheme that has been named and described by the LA as supporting low income and vulnerable households for the purposes of NICE Guideline. In Nuneaton and Bedworth, and North Warwickshire, residents may be eligible under this Proxy if they have:
    1. Been supported by either the Council's Household Support Fund Or Warwickshire Welfare Scheme
    2. Has received a Disabled Facilities Grant at any time or a Warm and Safe Homes Grant within the last 5 years.
  • A household referred to the Local Authority for support by their energy supplier or Citizen's Advice because they have been identified as struggling to pay their electricity and/or gas bills

Proxy 1 (LSOA) and Proxy 3 (NICE guidance) cannot be used together. Instead, these two proxies must be used in isolation of each other and combined with a different proxy from the list above. This is because these are very broad criteria compared to the others in the list and may not target low income and vulnerable households by themselves.

Route 3

Must have the following:

  • EPC bands D, E, F, or G owner-occupied households (or E-G for privately rented households)
  • been identified by their doctor or GP as low-income and vulnerable, with an occupant who has severe and/or long-term health conditions that may be adversely impacted by living in a cold home. These conditions must fall under one of the following categories:
    1. Respiratory disease
    2. Cardiovascular condition
    3. Immunosuppression
    4. Limited mobility

Households under this route can only be referred by:

  • An NHS Foundation Trust
  • An NHS Trust
  • An NHS Health Board
  • NHS General Medical Practitioner (GP)

Route 4

Must have the following:

  • SAP bands D, E, F, or G owner-occupied households (or E-G for privately rented households)
  • A supplier or Local Authority referral to BEIS as being a low income and vulnerable household, who are not already eligible under the existing routes.

All potentially eligible households should apply through an EC04 supplier to ensure that they can either benefit from the scheme or be assessed for eligibility under any other relevant programme. If you do not qualify for ECO funding, you can contact Act on Energy, for free, impartial advice on saving money on your energy bills and improving the energy efficiency of your home. The Act on Energy team may also be able help you identify alternative sources of funding for home energy efficiency improvements your energy bills and improving the energy efficiency of your home. The Act on Energy team may also be able help you identify alternative sources of funding for home energy efficiency improvements.

The publication of this Statement of Intent (SOI) enables Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council and North Warwickshire Borough Council to provide additional eligibility criteria under the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) Local Authority Flexibility route. For more information, view the ECO4 FAQs