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Thousands of homes to receive free energy efficiency upgrades thanks to £41.4 million funding win

Residents across the southeast are set to receive energy efficiency upgrades to improve their homes and save money on energy bills thanks to £41.4 million in funding that has been awarded to a consortium led by Portsmouth City Council.

The funding has been received through the Home Upgrade Grant, which is a government scheme to improve the energy efficiency of vulnerable and low-income homes that do not have gas central heating. This affects around 2,000 homes across Portsmouth, Gosport, Havant and the wider southeast. The council is acting as the lead council of a consortium of 22 local authority partners.

The money will go towards improvements such as insulation, air source heat pumps, solar panels and heating controls to save households between £220 and £400 a year on energy bills.

This funding is on top of the £50 million already awarded to the Portsmouth City Council-led consortium, which has supported over 2,700 homes through the Warmer Homes Programme. In total, this has given residents a lifetime bill savings of £11.1 million.

Cllr Kimberly Barrett, Cabinet Member for Climate Change and the Environment, said:

“This new funding award is a welcome addition to the support we already provide to people in Portsmouth to help them through the current energy and cost of living crisis. I’d urge people to take advantage of the funding to make their homes warmer, greener, and cheaper to run.”

Lord Callanan, Minister for Energy Efficiency and Green Finance, said:

“This investment will help thousands of households to heat their homes for less, keep them warm for longer and could save hundreds on their annual energy bill.

“The green energy sector is growing, and this funding will support green jobs and provide the training needed to deliver these vital upgrades to homes.”

The funding will be available from April and will act as a continuation of the support already available via Switched On Portsmouth for the next 2 years.

The funding will support the council to reach its commitment of net zero by 2030 and to support vulnerable and fuel poor homes across the city.

Resident Fred received an air source heat pump through the first round of Home Upgrade Grant funding, and saw his Energy Performance Certificate improve from a score of E to a C. He said:

 

“Since having a heat pump installed, my energy bills have gone down by 50% and the EPC rating of my home has gone from and E to a C.

“One of the things I found incredible about air source heat pumps is that for each unit of electricity you use, you get three units of heat in return. This has seen my energy consumption plummet”.

If you live in a house with no gas central heating, you can apply to benefit from this scheme via Switched On Portsmouth.

For more information the warmer homes programme, click here.

Residents across the southeast are set to receive energy efficiency upgrades to improve their homes and save money on energy bills thanks to £41.4 million in funding that has been awarded to a consortium led by Portsmouth City Council.

The funding has been received through the Home Upgrade Grant, which is a government scheme to improve the energy efficiency of vulnerable and low-income homes that do not have gas central heating. This affects around 2,000 homes across Portsmouth, Gosport, Havant and the wider southeast. The council is acting as the lead council of a consortium of 22 local authority partners.

The money will go towards improvements such as insulation, air source heat pumps, solar panels and heating controls to save households between £220 and £400 a year on energy bills.

This funding is on top of the £50 million already awarded to the Portsmouth City Council-led consortium, which has supported over 2,700 homes through the Warmer Homes Programme. In total, this has given residents a lifetime bill savings of £11.1 million.

Cllr Kimberly Barrett, Cabinet Member for Climate Change and the Environment, said:

“This new funding award is a welcome addition to the support we already provide to people in Portsmouth to help them through the current energy and cost of living crisis. I’d urge people to take advantage of the funding to make their homes warmer, greener, and cheaper to run.”

Lord Callanan, Minister for Energy Efficiency and Green Finance, said:

“This investment will help thousands of households to heat their homes for less, keep them warm for longer and could save hundreds on their annual energy bill.

“The green energy sector is growing, and this funding will support green jobs and provide the training needed to deliver these vital upgrades to homes.”

The funding will be available from April and will act as a continuation of the support already available via Switched On Portsmouth for the next 2 years.

The funding will support the council to reach its commitment of net zero by 2030 and to support vulnerable and fuel poor homes across the city.

Resident Fred received an air source heat pump through the first round of Home Upgrade Grant funding, and saw his Energy Performance Certificate improve from a score of E to a C. He said:

 

“Since having a heat pump installed, my energy bills have gone down by 50% and the EPC rating of my home has gone from and E to a C.

“One of the things I found incredible about air source heat pumps is that for each unit of electricity you use, you get three units of heat in return. This has seen my energy consumption plummet”.

If you live in a house with no gas central heating, you can apply to benefit from this scheme via Switched On Portsmouth.

For more information the warmer homes programme, click here.