Green Homes Grant Scheme Latest

5th Aug 2020

The government has released more information on its Green Homes Grant scheme. It specifies that, all builders, plumbers and other relevant tradespeople across England will need to be registered with TrustMark, the government-backed seal of approval, before they can carry out any work for the Green Homes Grant scheme.

The £2bn scheme is scheduled to go live at the end of September this year and will fund two-thirds of the cost of home improvements, supporting in excess of 100,000 jobs in green construction.

Updated Green Homes Grant scheme information:

• All installers involved MUST be registered with TrustMark
• All installations to be lodged via the TrustMark Data Warehouse
• TrustMark will undertake overarching auditing of the installations – desktop and onsite
• Access to the scheme will be via BEIS Simple Energy Advice Tool website
• Objective is to treat 600,000 homes
• We now know the measures involved – Primary/First Line measures (insulation or Heat Pumps) must be installed to claim the voucher. Secondary measures (Glazing and heating controls) can be added where primary measures are installed.

Important Dates

• Scheme Administrator starts running scheme this month
• Applications for the funding will only be allowed from mid-late Sept – no go early websites or offers allowed.
• Vouchers need to be applied for and approved by March 31st 2021
• Installations can carry on for a period (TBC) after this date.

“The Green Homes Grant is seismic news for the UK energy industry. It should be used to bring in new standards, upskill our workforce and provide a springboard to achieve our 2035 and 2050 carbon and energy targets. It must be administered corrected to protect the consumer and the government pocket. The industry is finally getting some answers about how the scheme will work and I welcome any steps towards clarity on the Scheme. However, there is still no detail on how properties will be assessed for suitability of measures and to ensure that consumers are protected.

I see this as an essential part of any grant process. At the very least it is essential that properties are assessed, and that this data is accurate and representative of how the property performs and appropriate recommendations are generated. This should be via a Retrofit Assessment (to ensure all alternative measures are considered, like Heat Pumps) or at a minimum, a new EPC. Stroma Certification will of course be attending further briefings and meetings around the grant scheme and we will be keeping our members updated via social media and our website.”

Director of Energy Certification, Andrew Parkin.

You can find out more about the government’s new Green Homes Grant scheme here