What is it?

Insulation grants are part of the Energy Company Obligation (ECO); a government scheme funded by utility companies including the 'Big Six'.

These grants help low income households in England, Scotland and Wales (unfortunately this grant isn’t available in Northern Ireland, to access funding for insulation in Northern Ireland you need to contact NIDirect Government Services) to become more energy efficient and lower heating bills. Eligible households can apply for a grant to install insulation grant using a Registered Insulation Installer.

The 'Big Six' utility companies, including Npower, EDF and British Gas, are obliged to provide funding so that those who need to can improve the efficiency of their homes. This includes grants for new boilers and insulation. As the funding is a grant, not a loan, it doesn’t need to be repaid and could cover a large part - if not all - of the cost of insulating your home.

Can I get it?

If you receive a qualifying benefit the Government could provide you with the money you need to re-insulate your home, improve energy efficiency and save money.

What kind of insulation will a grant cover?

There are grants available for several different types of insulation, and you could be eligible for more than one!

• Cavity wall insulation
• External wall insulation
• Internal wall insulation
• Loft insulation
• Internal wall insulation
• Party wall insulation
• Room in roof insulation
• Underfloor insulation

You may be offered enough to fund the entire installation but some people receive only some of the money and need to contribute to the costs.

Who is eligible for an Insulation Grant?

If you receive a qualifying benefit the Government could provide you with the money to improve insulation in your home. To qualify you need to be claiming a means-tested benefit or receive Child Benefit with an income under a limit. For more details see our ECO scheme eligibility guide.

To qualify you must be a homeowner or a private renter and the property must also meet rules about its Energy Performance Certificate rating.

Other eligibility criteria information:

• If you live in a Housing Association grants are only available on properties with Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of E, F or G 
• If you live in a rented property grants are only available to rented properties with an EPC rating of A, B, C, D or E AND landlord permission is always required to complete the insultation grant application process (the installer can help you with this)
• Stone built properties older than 25 years are usually not eligible for insulation grants (this is because its only in the past 25 years or so that stone has been dressed on the inside of the cavity making it smooth rather than jagged which does not allow the insulating material to be installed correctly)
• For cavity wall insulation, houses built on or after 1982 will already be insulated when built in accordance with building regulations which came out in the same year
• Loft insulation must be 100mm / 4 inch or less to qualify for ECO funding

Apply for an insulation grant