UK Wide Grants

Low carbon buildings

If you are considering installing a renewable energy technology in your home, you may be eligible for a grant.

The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform's (BERR) low carbon buildings programme provides grants for householders.

Grants are available for microgeneration technologies including: solar photovoltaic, wind turbines, small scale hydro, solar water heating, heat pumps and bioenergy. The programme will also fund renewable CHP, micro CHP and fuel cells. Please see the low carbon buildings programme website for more information.

Before installing any renewable energy technology it is important to make sure that you're using energy as efficiently as possible by taking measures to minimise your energy needs. You'll then need to use less renewable energy, saving you even more.

What levels of grants will be available?

The current grant levels are as follows and we will regularly review them as the market for each technology develops:

Technology	Maximum Amount of Grant
Solar photovoltaics	Maximum of £2,000 per kW of installed capacity, subject to an overall maximum of £2,500 or 50% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is the lower
Wind turbines	Maximum of £1,000 per kW of installed capacity, subject to an overall maximum of £2,500 or 30% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is the lower
Small hydro	Maximum of £1,000 per kW of installed capacity, subject to an overall maximum of £2,500 or 30% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is the lower
Solar thermal hot water	Overall maximum of £400 or 30% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is the lower
Ground source heat pumps	Overall maximum of £1,200 or 30% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is the lower
Air source heat pumps	Overall maximum of £900 or 30% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is lower
Automated wood pellet fed room heaters/stoves	Overall maximum of £600 or 20% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is the lower
Wood fuelled boiler systems	Overall maximum of £1,500 or 30% of the relevant eligible costs, whichever is the lower

Who can apply for a grant?

Individual property owners including private householders can apply for grants from the programme.

How will the application process work?

Applications are accepted on a rolling first-come-first-served basis. An outline of the process is as follows:

Complete the energy efficiency measures required by the programme, obtain planning permission for your installation if necessary and obtain a quote from an accredited installer.
Make an application online.
After receiving a grant offer letter via email, order the equipment and begin installing the technology.
After you have completed the installation and you have paid the installer, you can submit the claim documents to the Energy Saving Trust.
The grant claim is checked and, if in order, the grant will be issued within 25 working days of receipt of all the documentation.

Applications can be received from properties located within England, Wales, Northern Ireland or Scotland (excluding the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands). Please note: you should wait until you have received a grant offer letter before commencing the installation.

What are the required energy efficiency measures?

You must undertake a number of energy efficiency measures before you are eligible to apply for a grant from the Low Carbon Buildings Programme. These measures will ensure that you are minimising your energy requirements. Before applying we require you to have:

Insulated the whole of the loft of the property to meet current building regulations e.g. 270mm of mineral wool loft insulation or suitable alternative
Installed cavity wall insulation (if you have cavity walls)
Fitted low energy light bulbs in all appropriate light fittings
Installed basic controls for your heating system to include a room thermostat and a programmer or timer.

We recommend that you complete a home energy check to assess which measures are most suitable for your home. You can also call your local Energy Saving Trust advice centre on 0800 512 012 for guidance on energy efficiency measures and energy efficiency grants available in your area.

What are the criteria for receiving a grant?

The main criteria for householders are:

Applicants must be the householder/ owners of the property for which the grant is applied (applicants who have leasehold ownership must have permission of the property freeholder).
Applicants must be resident of, and the installation address be situated in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland (excluding the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands).
Systems must supply a permanent building (mobile homes, caravans, house boats etc. are not eligible).
You have installed the basic level of energy efficiency measures as outlined above. You may be able to access grants for energy efficiency measures. Have a look at the Energy Saving Trust's grants information database or call your local Energy Saving Trust advice centre on 0800 512 012 for information on energy efficiency grants .
You must have received planning permission for your installation or received confirmation from your local authority that it is not required.

Can I apply more than once for the same project for different technologies?

Yes you can. You can apply for funding for up to 3 different technologies on one building, with a maximum of 3 different buildings funded (NB these have to be on separate applications). There is a maximum of £2,500 of funding available per installation address.

I received a grant under the old schemes (Clear Skies and PV schemes), can I have a grant from the Low Carbon Buildings Programme too?

Yes, provided it is for another technology. You cannot have more than one grant from this or the previous programmes for the same technology.

What can be funded?

Grants are available for more than one microgeneration technology at the same address. All new systems supported with Low Carbon Buildings Grants must deliver an output of greater than 0.5kWp for electrical installations. There is no minimum for thermal installations.

Applications must be related to installations on permanent buildings. Applications for temporary and mobile buildings or non-building related installations will not be considered for Grant support (e.g. mobile homes, houseboats, motorway sound barriers, telecommunication towers).

Grants will only be awarded in respect of equipment and work directly related to the installed system. This includes design of the system, the cost of the plant and/or materials, installation and connection. Unrelated building works are not eligible.

Grants may only be claimed for approved (certified) products/systems. Your certified installer will be aware of this list. Where you have applied for a grant and installed a product not listed on the approved register, your grant will NOT be paid.

Installations should be designed and commissioned by certified installers. If a non-certified installer carries out the installation, then the grant will not be awarded in respect of this part of the cost. A certified installer must confirm that the system has been satisfactorily installed by signing the programme completion certificate.

Please note the grant will not cover:

Value Added Tax (VAT)
Un-associated costs (e.g. roofing works outside the direct installation of the microtechnology system, vandal covers, asbestos removal, upgrades to your household ring main, new radiators or heat distribution system, etc.)
Warranty costs – all accredited microgeneration installers are required to provide an installation warranty free of charge. Manufacturers usually provide an extensive lifetime warranty for their technology. Consult your installer for details of these warranties before committing
Expenditure on works or activities which any other person or organisation has a statutory duty to undertake
Any liability arising out of negligence on the part of the Applicant or its representatives
Expenditure of a political or religious nature