Home energy help for residents
National support schemes
The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) Scheme
The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme and Great British Insulation Scheme (GBIS) ended on the 31 March 2026 for new applications. The ECO4 scheme has been extended until 31 December 2026 to support a managed closure and allow suppliers further time to meet their obligations.
Eligibility requirements applied to the schemes and you needed to live in a property with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of Band E-G to apply. If you met certain eligibility criteria, you may have been able to benefit from a range of energy efficiency upgrades including insulation and heating upgrades.
Households who were eligible to apply included people who are:
- classed as living on a low household income, or
- vulnerable to the effects
- of living in a cold home, or
- in receipt of qualifying benefits
We were working with a preferred supplier but that contract has now ended.
Other providers are available in the area, please contact homeenergy@cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk to request a list. Please note that the Council does not have a contractual obligation with any of these firms and you will need to engage with them directly.
Further information
More information on the national ECO scheme can be found on the Ofgem website.
Previous Statements of Intent:
Note to ECO4 Flex installers: we are not on-boarding any additional installers at present.
Warm Homes Grant
Warm Homes Grant funding is expected to be available until 31 March 2028 in west Cheshire for home insulation and renewables such as heat pumps and solar panels. The grant has been made possible by funding from the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero.
Grants are available for homes which have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) that is Band D, E, F or G. You can check on the Energy Performance Certificate Register for your address. If your property doesn't have a certificate, we can help you to arrange one if you qualify for this scheme.
The amount of grant you can apply for varies depending on your property and the type of work that is needed. Homeowners are typically not expected to pay anything towards the scheme unless building repairs are needed before the insulation or renewables can be installed. In private rented properties, the landlord is expected to make a minimum 50 per cent contribution to the scheme after the first property.
Typical improvements to your home that may be carried out using the grant, include:
- solid wall insulation (internal or external)
- cavity wall insulation
- loft, room-in-roof and flat roof insulation
- under-floor insulation
- heat pump
- solar photovoltaic (PV) panels for electricity generation
- high heat retention electric storage heaters, where a heat pump isn't suitable
- heating controls.
The target is for the energy efficiency measures to improve your EPC rating by at least two bands - for example, if your home is Band E, it should reach Band C or above with the planned improvements.
To qualify, you must be a homeowner who is living in the property as their main residence, or a private tenant, and meet the income criteria listed below.
- You receive an income related benefit (for example, Universal Credit, Pension Credit Guarantee, Council Tax Support, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, or Tax Credits), or
- Your total household income before tax, National Insurance and other deductions is no more than £36,000, or
- Your total household income before tax, National Insurance and other deductions is no more than £20,000 after your housing costs have been deducted (by housing costs, we mean mortgage payments, rent payments and Council Tax), or
- You live in an eligible postcode area identified by the scheme.
When we calculate your household income, we will ignore any disability benefits (such as Personal Independence Payment or Attendance Allowance) so this will not count towards your household income.
If you think you may be eligible please apply via the Government website.
Our partners, Cheshire East Council, are managing the enquiries for this scheme for us and will check your eligibility for this grant when they receive your application. They may be in touch with you directly about your enquiry. Community Home Solutions is the appointed delivery partner for our Warm Homes local grant scheme.
The Warm Home Discount scheme for eligible park home residents is administered by Charis Grants and offers £150 towards energy costs for eligible park home residents.
To be eligible you must meet the following criteria:
- be a permanent park home resident, and
- pay your electricity bill directly to your park owner, and
- be in receipt of a means-tested benefit.
Households are also eligible where they can demonstrate:
- that they are in fuel poverty or a fuel poverty risk group
- or have an annual household income of £21,091 or less (before tax and deductions)
There is limited funding available and it is offered on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information see Charisgrants.com.
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme opened in April 2023 and is expected to run until 31 March 2028. The scheme is currently supported by £1.5 billion of national government funding for the installation of heat pumps and biomass boilers for both domestic and smaller non-domestic properties, as part of the Government’s efforts to decarbonise heat in buildings.
The scheme is administered by Ofgem on behalf of Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ). The grant provides upfront capital, is available to all home owners and the installation must replace an existing fossil fuel heating system:
- £9,000 off the cost and installation of air-to-water or ground source heat pumps in eligible off-gas grid properties. This is available until 31 March 2027.
- £7,500 off the cost and installation of air-to-water heat pumps, ground source heat pumps and water source heat pumps
- £5,000 off the cost and installation of biomass boilers
- £2,500 off the cost and installation of air-to-air heat pumps for residential properties only
More information can be found on the Ofgem website.
The Priority Services Register is an industry-wide free support service that offers additional help to people in vulnerable situations. Energy suppliers and Network Operators both keep registers.
There are many benefits to registering, such as getting priority support with heating and cooking facilities if your supply is cut off, get advanced notice of power cuts and an identification and password scheme if you need to be contacted or are expecting a home visit.
You are eligible to join the priority services register if you:
- are of pensionable age
- have young children under 5
- are living with a mental health condition
- have a chronic illness
- have a disability
- are visually impaired
- are deaf or hard of hearing
- need documents translated into another format or language
- have poor or no sense of smell
- temporarily need extra support
- have other needs not listed.
Contact your energy supplier to find out more and to register. If your gas and electricity is provided by different energy companies, you will need to contact both.
Your energy supplier can notify your Network Operators on your behalf. In Cheshire West, the Network Operators are SP Energy Networks (electricity) and Cadent (gas).
A similar service is offered by water companies in Cheshire West; United Utilities and HD Cymru. For more information on what support is available, visit your water company website.
If you're a property owner, you can use this service to see what recommendations may be suitable for your property to help make it cheaper to heat and keep warm. For each recommendation you will be provided with an estimate of how much the improvement will cost, how much you could save on bills and what the next steps would be if you decide to make the improvement.
More information about this service can be found on the GOV.UK website.
