Funding & Schemes

Several government schemes support energy efficiency and low carbon heating improvements. They are not interchangeable. Each has its own eligibility rules, its own geographic coverage and its own current status: some are open now, some are delivered through local councils, and some are closed to new applications while approved projects are completed.

The summaries below set out where each scheme currently stands. They are a general guide rather than an eligibility assessment, and the official scheme pages linked in each section are the definitive source.

NOVO Clean Energy does not administer, award or guarantee government funding.

Warm Homes: Local Grant

Available through participating local authorities

The Warm Homes: Local Grant funds energy efficiency and low carbon heating improvements for lower-income households in privately owned homes in England.

The scheme is delivered by local authorities rather than centrally. Councils holding an allocation assess applications, arrange the home survey, and organise and pay for the work that follows. Availability therefore depends on your own local authority having funding for the scheme.

Who the scheme is intended for

  • Homes in England. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have separate schemes.
  • Privately owned property, whether owner-occupied or privately rented
  • An Energy Performance Certificate rating of D, E, F or G
  • A household income usually of £36,000 a year or less
  • Households above that income may still qualify through certain postcode areas, or where someone in the household receives certain benefits

Improvements a council may recommend include wall, loft and underfloor insulation, air source heat pumps, smart controls and solar panels. What is offered depends on the survey of the individual property.

Where a home is privately rented, the landlord may need to contribute towards the cost of some improvements.

Meeting the criteria above does not guarantee an offer of funding. Eligibility is decided by your local authority.

Full criteria and the application route are on GOV.UK: Apply for the Warm Homes: Local Grant.

Register your interest

Warm Homes Loan Scheme

In lender rollout — not yet available to consumers

The Warm Homes Loan Scheme (WHLS) is a government programme intended to increase the availability of private lending for home retrofit.

Government has committed £300 million of grant capital to support growth in retrofit lending and to reduce the cost of that lending. It is aimed at financing energy efficiency improvements in owner-occupied and privately rented homes.

The scheme is currently being established with lenders rather than with householders. The first application window for lenders has closed, and government has said it expects to open a further lender application window later in 2026.

Consumer products, participating lenders, interest rates, loan terms and borrower eligibility have not yet been published.

You can register your interest to receive further information as the scheme develops. Registering your interest is not a loan application and does not indicate that finance will become available to you or on any particular terms.

Scheme documentation is on GOV.UK: Warm Homes Loan Scheme: apply to participate as a lender.

Register for updates

Boiler Upgrade Scheme

Open — grants currently available

The Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) provides a grant towards the cost of replacing a fossil fuel heating system with a heat pump or biomass boiler. It covers England and Wales and is administered by Ofgem.

Current grant values

  • £7,500 towards an air source (air-to-water) heat pump
  • £7,500 towards a ground source heat pump, including water source heat pumps
  • £5,000 towards a biomass boiler
  • £2,500 towards an air-to-air heat pump
  • £9,000 towards an air-to-water or ground source heat pump where the property is off the gas grid and the system being replaced runs on oil or LPG. This higher value applies from 21 July 2026 until 31 March 2027.

The £9,000 value does not apply to every off-grid property. It depends on both the technology being installed and the heating system being replaced — off-grid properties replacing other fuels remain at the standard value. Ofgem’s guidance sets out the full conditions.

Other points to be aware of

  • One grant per property
  • The grant is applied for by an MCS certified installer on the property owner’s behalf, not by the owner directly
  • Hybrid systems, such as a gas boiler combined with a heat pump, are not eligible
  • Most new build properties and social housing are excluded
  • Capacity limits apply: 45kWth for an individual system, 70kWth where a heat pump is installed with one or more additional heat pumps, and 300kWth for shared ground loops

NOVO Clean Energy does not award Boiler Upgrade Scheme grants. Ofgem administers the scheme.

Full eligibility and grant conditions are published by Ofgem: Boiler Upgrade Scheme.

Register your interest

Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund

Wave 3 in delivery — applications closed

The Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund, previously known as the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, supports social housing providers in England to raise the energy performance of homes rated below EPC band C.

Wave 3 applications closed on 25 November 2024 and £1.29 billion was allocated. Successful projects were announced in March 2025 and are now in delivery, which runs to September 2028.

Wave 3 is closed to new applications. Any future wave would be announced by government.

NOVO Clean Energy works with social housing providers on the delivery of retrofit projects. Our social housing service is set out on our Solutions page.

Scheme documentation is on GOV.UK: Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund Wave 3.

Register your interest

Scheme information checked 10 August 2026. Government schemes, grant values and eligibility rules can change. Always check the relevant GOV.UK or Ofgem guidance for the latest position. Registering your interest with NOVO Clean Energy is not an application to a government scheme and does not guarantee eligibility or funding.