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£40 million for local energy bill blitz

The Government is putting local action at the heart of efforts to keep energy bills down and homes warm, with an £40 million competition aimed…

This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

The Government is putting local action at the heart of efforts to keep energy bills down and homes warm, with an £40 million competition aimed at driving local initiatives to boost energy efficiency, reduce fuel poverty and encourage collective switching and purchasing.

Energy Secretary Edward Davey said:

“With prices rising and temperatures dropping, we want to make sure we are doing all we can to help vulnerable householders keep warm this winter.

“This funding will put local councils at the heart of action to get energy bills down, for instance helping low income householders upgrade old inefficient heating systems and insulate draughty homes.

“As well as helping even more councils showcase the benefits of energy efficiency, this funding will support the launch of initiatives to enable local residents to save money by clubbing together to get a better energy deal.”

The competition, run by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC), has three strands, each with a separate pot of money up for grabs:

  • £25million to help householders keep warm this winter

Local councils in England are being invited to bid for up to £25 million to help improve the thermal efficiency of homes in their local area. This competition is aimed specifically at helping low income and vulnerable people keep warm this winter and aims to help cut heating costs by installing kit like efficient new and replacement boilers and loft and cavity wall insulation.

  • £10 million to kick start Green Deal projects

There is also £10 million available for Green Deal ‘pioneer’ projects for councils in England. This money can be used for a variety of schemes aimed at promoting the Green Deal, from whole house retrofits to demonstrate the benefits of energy efficiency to local residents, to community engagement events to raise awareness of what can be done. The Pioneer Places scheme builds on the investment already being channelled into seven Green Deal Low Carbon Cities, announced earlier this month, enabling more councils to benefit.

  • ‘Cheaper Energy Together’: £5 million to set up collective switching schemes

Money is also available for councils and third sector organisations in England, Scotland and Wales for the ‘Cheaper Energy Together’ scheme aimed at helping set up collective switching schemes in their local area. Collective purchasing and switching is an innovative way for consumers to group together (through a trusted third party) and use market power to negotiate lower energy bills.

Potential bidders can apply for money under all of the competitions using a single application form. Bids for each of the competitions will however be judged separately against a range of criteria including value for money, impact on fuel poverty, and potential to generate further investment.

The closing date for applications is 30 November 2012 and successful bidders will be announced shortly afterwards.

Notes for editors:

  1. Local authorities can download the competition scheme guidance and application form the competition page on the DECC website 
    Applications can be submitted to DECC online.
  2. The fuel poverty and Green Deal schemes are open to local authorities in England only. The ‘Cheaper Energy Together’ collective switching fund is open to local authorities and third sector organisations across Great Britain. Local authorities who have already received funding under the Green Deal Low Carbon Cities scheme are not eligible for the Green Deal Pioneer Places competition. Full eligibility is set out in the competition scheme guidance.
  3. Government is also seeking local authorities’ views on supporting renewable heat.
  4. Government is making sure the most vulnerable households get direct financial help from their supplier. Over 1 million pensioners will get £130 off their fuel bills this winter as part of the Warm Home Discount scheme, with the wider scheme helping around 2m households overall this year. And direct from the Government, all pensioner households under 79 will get £200 Winter Fuel Payment this winter and those over 80 will get £300 - these payments will be paid out to an estimated 12.7 million older people in more than 9 million homes. At a time when families need help with the cost of living the Government is taking further action to help. Government is freezing council tax in 2013-14 for the third consecutive year, and capping the increase on average regulated fares at RPI+1 per cent for rail fares and TfL fares in 2013 and 2014.
  5. Further information on help with bills and energy efficiency can be found on GOV.UK website.
  6. The Green Deal will help people pay for home improvements like insulation through savings on their energy bills. Further information on the Green Deal can be found on the Green Deal pages of the DECC website.
  7. The seven Green Deal core cities were announced in September 2012 and more information is available in the DECC press release.
  8. Further information on collective switching can be found on the collective switching page of the DECC website
Published 19 October 2012