Warm Homes Local Grant

Darlington Borough Council is part of the Tees Valley Warm Homes partnership and has been awarded nearly £14 million from the government's Warm Homes: Local Grant scheme.

The funding will help eligible households make their homes warmer, more energy efficient, and cheaper to heat.

The scheme runs until March 2028 and offers free energy-saving improvements to qualifying residents. These improvements can help reduce energy bills and make homes more comfortable all year round.

Available upgrades

Eligible homes can receive funding up to an average of £16,600 for energy saving measures plus a further £16,600 for low-carbon heating systems.

Improvements may include:

• floor, loft and wall insulation
• air or ground source heat pump
• smart heating controls
• low energy lighting
• solar panels (solar PV)
• energy efficient doors and windows

The scheme does not provide new gas boilers.

The Local Grant will prioritise installing highly energy efficient heating systems, instead of boilers powered by fossil fuels.

If your home is eligible, we will arrange for the improvements to be installed by our approved contractor, E.ON Green Funding Solutions.

Eligibility criteria

To qualify for the grant, you must meet all the following three conditions:

1. Tenure - you must own your home or rent from a private landlord
2. Energy rating - your home must have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of D, E, F, or G. We can arrange a survey to assess this if you don't already have one.
3. Low income - you must meet one of the following:

• • annual gross household income of £36,000 or less
  • receive certain means-tested benefits (for example Universal Credit or Pension Credit)
  • live in an eligible postcode area (deprived areas as ranked by the government)

Note for landlords: Landlords can receive 100 percent funding for their first property and 50 percent for any additional properties.

How to apply

To find out if you can get funding through the scheme contact E.ON Green Homes Funding Team:

• you can apply online on the E.On website [external link]
• or call 03332 024820 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm)

Further information about applications

The scheme is designed to provide improvements that will make the biggest difference for those in fuel poverty. (Where fuel poverty is defined as spending a high proportion of your income on heating your home).

Please only apply if you genuinely need support. We may decide not to fund improvements if we do not feel a household is at risk of fuel poverty.

Living in an eligible postcode area does not guarantee funding. All funding is limited and subject to further checks. This means we may not be able to help every household that qualifies.

Before any work can take place, your home will need to be assessed. If any existing defects are found these may need to be fixed by the householder or landlord before any energy efficiency works begin.