Home Insulation Grants in England
What insulation grants are available in England right now
If you live in England, two national funding routes can pay for some or all of your home insulation in 2026. The first is ECO4, the fourth phase of the Energy Company Obligation, which is delivered by the larger energy suppliers. The second is the Warm Homes: Local Grant, which your local council runs for lower-income households in poorly insulated homes. Both are open now, and both sit under the government's wider Warm Homes Plan.
Just as important is knowing what has closed. The Great British Insulation Scheme (GBIS) closed to new applications on 31 March 2026 and has no successor. The Home Upgrade Grant Phase 2 (HUG2) closed on 31 March 2025. There is no "ECO5" and no wave of "new free grants from April 2026" — if a caller or website tells you otherwise, treat that as a warning sign, not an offer. Our insulation grant scams page explains the common traps in more detail.
This site is an independent guide. We install nothing and run no scheme of our own — everything here points you to the official channels, where applying is always free.
ECO4 in England: open to 31 December 2026
ECO4 is a legal obligation on the larger energy suppliers to fund energy-efficiency improvements in lower-income and vulnerable households across Great Britain. Following the government response published on 23 January 2026, the scheme was extended by nine months, from its original 31 March 2026 end date to 31 December 2026. There will be no successor supplier obligation after it ends, so this is a genuine window rather than a permanent entitlement.
ECO4 takes a "fabric first, whole-house" approach. Rather than fitting a single measure in isolation, an accredited installer assesses the whole property and recommends a package — which is why a loft-only enquiry can end up including wall or heating measures. You do not apply to Ofgem directly. You reach ECO4 in one of two ways:
- Via an obligated supplier or accredited installer — you can approach any participating supplier, not only your own.
- Via your council under ECO4 Flex (LA Flex) — a route for lower-income households who are not on qualifying benefits, referred by the council under its published Statement of Intent.
Because delivery depends on suppliers hitting their targets, some may stop taking new referrals before the December deadline. If ECO4 fits your circumstances, it is worth starting sooner rather than later.
Who qualifies for ECO4
The main qualifying means-tested benefits are: Universal Credit; Pension Guarantee Credit; Pension Savings Credit; Income Support; income-based Jobseeker's Allowance; income-related Employment and Support Allowance; Child Benefit (within income thresholds); Housing Benefit; Working Tax Credit; and Child Tax Credit. Tenure and EPC rules also apply: owner-occupiers need an EPC of D-G, while private and social tenants need an EPC of E-G, and private tenants must have the owner's permission. The not-on-benefits routes — ECO4 Flex and the Warm Homes: Local Grant income and postcode routes — matter if you fall just outside these categories.
The Warm Homes: Local Grant
The Warm Homes: Local Grant (WH:LG) is an England-only scheme delivered by your local council at no cost to the occupant. It opened in April 2025 and runs to around 31 March 2028, so it is the longer-term option of the two. It funds a broad package — wall, loft and underfloor insulation, air source heat pumps, heating controls and solar — for both on-gas and off-gas homes.
To be eligible your home must be rated EPC D-G and meet one of these conditions:
- a household income usually of £36,000 a year or less; or
- receipt of a qualifying means-tested benefit; or
- an eligible low-income postcode (Index of Multiple Deprivation income-decile 1 or 2).
The gov.uk apply page states no maximum grant value; secondary reports have quoted figures of up to around £30,000 per home, so treat that as indicative and check current gov.uk guidance for your area. Availability is genuinely council-by-council — some authorities have live schemes and open waiting lists, others are not yet delivering — so the first step is always to check what your own council offers.
ECO4 and Warm Homes: Local Grant compared
| Feature | ECO4 | Warm Homes: Local Grant |
|---|---|---|
| Who delivers it | Obligated energy suppliers / accredited installers, or council (Flex) | Your local council |
| Where | Great Britain (England, Scotland, Wales) | England only |
| Open until | 31 December 2026 | Around 31 March 2028 |
| EPC requirement | D-G (owner-occupier); E-G (tenant) | D-G |
| Main eligibility | Qualifying benefits, or council Flex referral | Income ≤£36,000, a benefit, or an eligible postcode |
| Typical measures | Whole-house insulation and heating | Insulation, heat pumps, controls, solar |
Many households will qualify for one route but not the other, and a good assessor will point you towards whichever fits. Our ECO4 vs GBIS comparison also explains why GBIS is no longer an option.
Where the Warm Homes Plan fits in
The Warm Homes Plan is the £15 billion umbrella programme published on 21 January 2026, which aims to upgrade up to five million homes. You do not apply to the Warm Homes Plan directly — it funds the delivery schemes described above, including the Warm Homes: Local Grant. If you want to understand the wider programme in detail, our sibling guide at warmhomesplanfunding.co.uk covers it; on this page the key point is simply that ECO4 and the Local Grant are the two doors an English homeowner or tenant actually walks through.
Which insulation measure might be funded
Grants are usually targeted at the measures that deliver the biggest efficiency gain for your particular home, established by a survey rather than by what you ask for. The table below shows typical unsubsidised costs (Energy Saving Trust, 2026) so you can see where funding makes the most difference.
| Measure | Typical cost (unfunded) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Loft insulation (270mm from bare) | ~£900 | Cheapest and most commonly funded |
| Cavity wall insulation | ~£2,700 | Only if cavities are suitable and in good condition |
| Solid wall — internal | ~£12,000 | Where a contribution is most likely to be requested |
| Solid wall — external | ~£18,000 | Highest cost; grants matter most here |
| Underfloor / suspended timber | £1,400–£2,500 | Varies with floor type and access |
| Room-in-roof | £1,500–£10,000 | Depends on the roof structure |
See our insulation cost guide for how a contribution is worked out, and the grants and funding hub for every scheme in one place.
Is it really free?
Honesty matters here. Insulation work under these schemes is often fully funded, but a contribution can be requested for the highest-cost measures — solid wall insulation in particular — where an ECO4 top-up model is common. GBIS was never a full grant scheme even when it was open, and the Warm Homes: Local Grant is targeted rather than universal. So the fair description is "often free, sometimes part-funded", not "free for everyone". Our is insulation really free page sets out exactly when a contribution applies.
One saving is available to almost everyone: in Great Britain, installing qualifying insulation has been at 0% VAT under the Energy-Saving Materials relief. That is a real reduction even if you fund the work yourself and do not qualify for a grant. Confirm the current rate and any end date against HMRC VAT Notice 708/6 — we cannot give tax advice, and treatment can change.
Make sure the work is done properly
Any grant-funded insulation must be carried out by a TrustMark-registered installer working to PAS 2035 (retrofit) and PAS 2030 (installation) standards. A compliant job starts with a retrofit assessment and a Retrofit Coordinator — if an installer skips the assessment and simply sells you a single measure, that is a red flag.
Quality is not a theoretical concern. The National Audit Office found in October 2025 that around 98% of external-wall-insulation jobs under ECO4 and GBIS had defects, prompting free TrustMark "Find and Fix" audits. If you have had grant-funded external wall insulation recently, it is worth checking whether your install needs auditing. Be wary too of spray-foam loft insulation, which can block mortgages and is a known mis-selling trap.
Genuine schemes are applied for through gov.uk, your council, or an accredited installer — never through an unsolicited cold call, text or doorstep seller, and never with an upfront payment before written grant approval. Verify any installer against the scheme channel: the obligated supplier or Ofgem for ECO4, and your council for the Warm Homes: Local Grant.
How to apply in England
- Check your EPC first. Nearly every route is gated on a rating of D-G, so knowing yours saves time. Our eligibility checker walks you through it.
- For the Warm Homes: Local Grant, use the gov.uk checker and then contact your local council, which decides who it funds and when. See how to apply for the step-by-step.
- For ECO4, approach an obligated supplier or accredited installer, or ask your council about the ECO4 Flex route if you are not on qualifying benefits.
If you are a renter, our guide to insulation grants for private tenants explains the landlord-permission rules. When you are ready, send us the details of your home through our contact form or request a quote, and we will point you to the right official channel. You can also browse the full FAQs or read the latest updates on our blog.
Official sources: Warm Homes: Local Grant on gov.uk, the ECO4 extension government response, and installer checks via TrustMark.
Insulation grants in the other UK nations
Before you commit in England: we install nothing and run no grant — applying through the official channel is always free. Insist on a TrustMark-registered installer working to PAS 2035, get any contribution in writing, and never start work before written grant approval. We’ll tell you honestly if no grant fits your home.
Not sure which measure to fund first? See the honest cost guide (grants matter most for solid wall, least for loft), or check exactly what you qualify for with the free eligibility checker.
Check your insulation grant options in England
We aim to reply within one working day
Tell us a little about your home and we’ll help you work out which live insulation grant fits — ECO4, the Warm Homes: Local Grant, Home Energy Scotland, Nest or Affordable Warmth — and point you to a genuinely TrustMark-registered installer if you want one. We’re an independent guide, not an installer, and we run no grant. Applying to the schemes is always free.
- 1. Tell us your situation — your nation, tenure and roughly how efficient your home is.
- 2. We sense-check the grant and tell you honestly which scheme (if any) applies.
- 3. You decide — no obligation, and no pushy calls.
- Independent guide
- gov.uk & Ofgem-sourced
- TrustMark / PAS 2035
- No obligation