East Staffordshire Borough Council is part of the Staffordshire Warmer Homes partnership and together with Community Home Solutions, we have joined forces to install home energy efficiency improvements for those who are eligible through various funding routes. 
Our main aim is to help towards Net Zero, reduce fuel poverty and help residents heat their homes sufficiently and efficiently.

Eligible residents may be able to access government-funded energy-saving improvements such as:

• Loft Insulation
• Wall Insulation
• Boiler Upgrades
• Air Source Heat Pumps
• Heating Controls
• Solar Panels

You may qualify for support if:

• Your property is off-gas
• Your property has an energy performance rating below D (You can check your property’s EPC online using www.epcregister.com)
• Someone in the household has a long-term health condition impacted by the cold such as respiratory disease, cardiovascular condition, limited mobility, or Immunosuppression.
• You have a household income of below £31,000 per year
• Or you claim a means-tested benefit

See if you are eligible for funding

If you would like to apply online visit: www.staffordshirewarmerhomes.co.uk or if you have any questions you can call our delivery partners Community Home Solutions on 0115 718 1822. 

For more information about how to get help with energy bills, and other cost-of-living support measures currently available please visit the Council’s dedicated cost-of-living support page.

Below is an overview of each of the fully funded schemes currently available:

ECO4: Energy Company Obligation

ECO4 is a government scheme aimed at enhancing energy efficiency and combating fuel poverty. Eligible households can own or rent their home and could receive a whole house package of measures which can make significant improvements to the energy performance of a property.  You could be eligible if you meet one of the following criteria and have an EPC rating of E, F or G: 

• Total gross household income is less than £31,000.
• Someone in the household receives one or more qualifying benefits.
• Someone in the household has a long-term health condition impacted by the cold such as: Respiratory disease, cardiovascular condition, limited mobility, or Immunosuppression.

GBIS: Great British Insulation Scheme

GBIS is a government initiative focused on delivering single insulation measures such as loft and wall insulation. You could be eligible if you meet one of the following criteria and have an EPC rating of D, E, F or G:

• Live within council tax bands A, B, C or D
• Someone in the household receives one or more qualifying benefits.
• Total gross household income is less than £31,000.
• Someone in the household has a long-term health condition impacted by the cold such as: Respiratory disease, cardiovascular condition, limited mobility, or Immunosuppression.

HUG2: Home Upgrade Grant

HUG2 provides funding for low-income non-gas households with Energy Performance Ratings of D, E, F, or G. Available for just homeowners, it covers various energy efficiency improvements such as loft insulation, cavity wall insulation, low carbon heating, or solar panels. You could be eligible if you meet one of the following criteria: 

• Home has an EPC rating of D, E, F, or G and is heated by non-gas means.
• Gross annual household income is less than £31,000, lives in an approved postcode, or receives qualifying means-tested benefits.

If you need to improve the energy efficiency of your home, are struggling to stay warm in winter or afford your energy bills, East Staffordshire Borough Council's free-phone energy advice service, provided on our behalf by Beat the Cold could help. 

Beat the Cold are an independent charity working to reduce the incidence of cold-related illness and fuel poverty.

They support households that are struggling to afford to keep their home warm, or whose health would be affected by living in a cold home by providing access to heating and insulation measures to vulnerable and low-income households. 

They can advise on: 

• Paying for fuel
• Finding the best available tariffs
• Switching supplier
• Improving energy efficiency in the home
• Fuel debt
• Free or low-cost insulation, solar energy and heat pumps
• Advice and support to access funding for heating repairs and replacements
• Access to grants including Warm Home Discount, Winter Fuel Payment and Cold Weather Payment
• Support to register households as priority customers with their energy provider

You can get in touch with Beat the Cold by calling 01782 914 915 or freephone 0800 389 2258 or emailing: enquiries@beatcold.org.uk. For more information visit http://www.beatcold.org.uk/

For more information about how to get help with energy bills, and other cost-of-living support measures currently available please visit the Council’s dedicated cost-of-living support page.

It is important to keep warm while the weather is cold. If you are a tenant and do not have heating you should notify your landlord as soon as possible and give them a reasonable amount of time to do the repair. A good landlord will provide temporary heaters to hep you stay warm. However if your landlord does not resolve the situation please contact the Environmental Heath Team on:

Tel: 01283 508680
Email: housing@eaststaffsbc.gov.uk

If your home is poorly insulated you are wasting energy and that is costing you money.

The older your home the more inefficient it is likely to be at keeping heat in.

Insulating your loft could put £104 back in your pocket each year. Just stopping the drafts can cut fuel bills by £100. If you insulate your hot water cylinder or install improved heating controls you can save even more.

Replacing single glazed windows with double glazing will save, on average, £41 per year.

The Energy Saving Trust has lots of advice about energy efficiency. Your energy supplier(s) will also have ways to help you.

• Keep your home warm- your living room should be between 18-21C and the rest of the house at a minimum of 16C
• Reduce drafts and insulate- use draught excluders on doors
• Dress to keep warm- layer your clothing to stay warm
• Keep moving and stay active
• Remove condensation from around windows to reduce mould growth
• Avoid drying clothes on radiators- use a clothes airer where possible
• Avoid going out in bad weather- if you must go out, wrap up in plenty of layers

The Great British Insulation Scheme and ECO4 Flex are household referral mechanisms within the wider schemes and enable Local Authorities such as East Staffordshire Borough Council to widen the eligibility criteria. 

This allows participating LAs or DAs to refer households they consider to be living in fuel poverty or on a low income, and vulnerable to the effects of living in a cold home, who may not qualify for the schemes via the standard eligibility criteria.

To enable this funding to be made available to East Staffordshire households, East Staffordshire Borough Council has published its Statement of Intent which outlines our intention to participate in the scheme and follow the scheme rules.

Previous versions of our SOI's are available here:

• Statement of Intent ECO4 V4 – Withdrawn
• Statement of Intent ECO4 V4.1 – Withdrawn

For further guidance on this scheme, you can visit Ofgem for more details.

Note to installers: East Staffordshire Borough Council are part of Staffordshire Warmer Homes and works in partnership with Community Home Solutions to deliver this initiative.

We therefore ask that any applications be made through them directly by emailing: info@communityhomesolutions.co.uk, and they will manage the relevant installer checks on our behalf.