The window for applications for a Green Homes Grant shuts at the end of this month so any eligible residents still weighing up the benefits are being urged to make their minds up very soon.
The funding could be used for any one of a range of ‘green’ home improvements, from insulation to low carbon heating systems.
And if the incentive of doing something for the environment wasn’t enough, using a grant to install measures to make your home more energy-efficient could also help reduce household bills – in some cases, families could save up to £600 a year.
In Wirral, the Green Homes Grant is open to applications from people who meet a certain set of criteria.
First of all, they must live in certain areas of either Liscard, Seacombe, Bidston and St. James, Birkenhead and Tranmere, Rock Ferry, New Ferry, Claughton, Oxton or Prenton.
The gross household income must be below £30,000 per year or below the Minimum Income Standard and the property should have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of D, E, F or G. As part of the first survey of your property, an EPC rating will be calculated, therefore if the property doesn’t currently have an EPC, you can still apply.
The property would be assessed to decide what work is needed. A company working on behalf of Wirral Council would do the survey and arrange any improvement work.
Potential improvements include:
- insulation – solid walls, cavity walls, lofts, suspended timber floors or room-in-roof
- upgrading single glazing to double glazing
- solar water heating
- solar electric panels
Grants for fossil fuel heating systems, such as gas boilers, are not available.
Funding is limited, so around 250 homes in the borough will be able to benefit from the scheme in this round. Applications are open until the end of September 2021. All work funded by the grants must be completed by the end of March 2022.
For more information, visit www.wirral.gov.uk/greengrants 
This infographic from the Energy Saving Trust shows the potential savings from ‘green’ home improvements.
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