Archives: FAQs

No. To qualify for the voucher you need to use a registered installer.

At the moment all work under the Green Homes Grant Scheme must be completed by 31 March 2022. (The original date was end of March 2021, but this has now been extended.) It may be further extended if there is more demand.

The government has introduced this scheme to create jobs as well as to improve the energy efficiency of UK homes.

The industry is not very big, so it has to hire and train more installers to be able to deliver this scheme.

In order to protect homeowners, the government has insisted that only certified professional installers should be allowed to carry out the work under this scheme.

This means that installers have to go through a stringent certification process for each type of measure they wish to install, and this takes time.

There are suitable installers for all the measures across the whole of England. As the registration only went live on 30 September, however, not all the installers have been able to complete the registration process yet.

There is a shortage of insulation installers qualified to carry out work for park homes in particular, as the standards of expertise required for them are much more stringent due to the nature of the buildings, so qualification takes slightly longer.

As we hear of more installers completing their registration in Cumbria, we will update the FAQs. For now, see our FAQ on installers in Cumbria.

It could be that you need to expand your search area to, say, 100 miles, because installers register via their head office but may, in fact, cover the whole county.

The insistence on properly certified installers is important, as you don’t want untrained people working on your house. Badly installed energy-efficiency measures could cause structural damage and health problems in homes. (Also, mortgage and insurance companies don’t like botched building works that could reduce the value of a property.)

You need to look for an installer that is listed as a Trustmark  B13 Park Home Insulation Installer.

Nobody else can provide the work with the necessary guarantees and insurances to allow you to get the grant voucher.

All installers working on insulating Park Homes MUST HAVE Trustmark registration under PAS2030:2019 part B13 : Park Home Insulation Installer and follow PAS2035 standards.

(At present CIGA is the only Trustmark Scheme Provider that is providing Trustmark Registration for Park Homes Insulation Installers.)

Yes. They also must be registered with Trustmark first.

For heat pumps (ground-, air- and water-source), solar thermal (liquid-filled flat plate or evacuated tube collectors) and biomass boilers, the installer should also be MCS certified.

Under Trustmark rules all installers have to operate to PAS 2030:2017, 2030:2019 or PAS 2035:2019 standards. 

Park homes

All installers working on insulating park homes MUST HAVE Trustmark registration under PAS2030:2019 part B13 : Park Home Insulation Installer and follow PAS2035 standards

(At present CIGA is the only Trustmark Scheme Provider that is providing Trustmark Registration for Park Homes Insulation Installers.)

The Application

• Homeowner checks their eligibility on the Simple Energy Advice website. You’ll complete their online questionnaire to check which measures you are eligible to install. (*Please see note below for more detail on this.)
• The homeowner finds a registered installer and gets a quote. An onsite survey by the proposed installer may be required, in order to give a realistic quote.
• The homeowner fills out the application form and lodges the quote with the Scheme Administrator online.
• The Administrator assesses the application and issues the voucher.

*NOTE: The government guidance is to get an EPC done for your property (or use an existing one if it’s not more than three years old) and get recommendations on top for the measures that are included in the Green Homes Grant scheme. The guidance also states that you should get independent advice from a source other than an installer. You will be required to tick a box on the application saying you have taken advice or are happy with your own investigations.

So you’ll need:

• The name and date of birth of the property owner or owners
• The name and date of birth of anyone living in the property who is receiving benefits
• A quote for the work from a TrustMark-registered tradesperson
• The TrustMark licence number of your chosen tradesperson
• Proof of your benefits if claiming the £10,000 voucher
• Evidence that you are fulfilling all the criteria required under the terms and conditions.

The Installation 

• The installer asks for a deposit and purchases the necessary materials
• The installer carries out the work to the required standards
• The installer files a report with Trustmark who check the quality of the work

Completion 

• The installer issues the necessary certification to the customer
• The customer signs off on the work completed
• The installer raises an invoice for the full amount
• The customer pays their contribution and passes over the voucher
• The installer applies for reimbursement of the voucher
• The Scheme Administrator verifies the claim and makes the payment

The full live list of installers registered under Green Homes Grant is available on the Simple Energy Advice website.

Please check there for the latest information.

As of 4 November 2020, we’re aware of the following installers working in Cumbria:

Thrift Energy

They work on all forms of insulation and work with Eden and Carlisle councils on ECOFlex schemes.

They will do external/internal walls under the Green Homes Grant scheme. For cavity wall and loft or room insulation they say they are more likely to move a client to the ECO3 scheme because of the lack of time to get work done under the Green Homes Grant.

Tel: 0800 689 3415

Direct Savings

They deal with renewable heat incentive (RHI), room-in-roof insulation, loft, floor, cavity and solid-wall insulation (internal and external).

They also work with some of the local councils.

Tel: 01506 444161
Email: [email protected]

Union Technical         

They are working on all insulation under the Green Homes Grant in Cumbria and work alongside Carlisle City Council on an ECOFlex scheme.

Tel: 0800 046 9190
Email: [email protected]

We are collecting details of installers available to work in Cumbria, as and when we find them. We’re keen to add more here, so do inform us if you find one so that we can share. Thank you!

The vouchers cover home improvements in 2 categories:

Primary Measures 

These cover insulation or low-carbon heating and include:

• solid wall insulation (internal or external)
• cavity wall insulation
• under-floor insulation (solid floor, suspended floor)
• loft insulation
• flat roof insulation
• pitched roof insulation
• room-in-roof insulation
• insulating a park home
• air-source heat pump
• ground-source heat pump
• solar thermal (liquid filled flat plate or evacuated tube collector)
• biomass boiler
• hybrid heat pump

Secondary Measures 

These cover windows, doors and heating controls, and include:

• draughtproofing
• double or triple glazing (where replacing single glazing)
• secondary glazing (in addition to single glazing)
• energy-efficient replacement doors (replacing single-glazed or solid doors installed before 2002)
• hot water tank thermostat
• hot water tank insulation
• heating controls (such as appliance thermostats, smart heating controls, zone controls, intelligent delayed start thermostat, thermostatic radiator valves)

If you install at least one primary measure, your voucher can be used to help cover the cost of any of the secondary measures, as long as the cost of the secondary measures does not exceed the amount you get for primary measures.

The voucher can be used to pay for:

• labour
• materials
• scaffolding
• VAT

Additional works will be covered by the voucher if they are necessary for the installation of measures.

Yes, they are encouraged to do so for buildings with an E, F or G ratings as they cannot officially let a property with a rating lower than an E. To take the grant, however, they would need to raise the accommodation to the band C level.

A landlord can apply for a £5000 voucher for each property that they own. They cannot apply for a £10,000 voucher. However, a scheme being phased in will allow up to £10,000 of measures with an implementation date of April 2025 for new tenancies and 2028 for all tenancies.

The government is concerned about those who cannot afford to contribute to the scheme so they have announced a low-income voucher worth £10,000 without any need for the homeowner to contribute.

If there is anyone in your household who may be entitled to one of the following benefits, you may be eligible to apply for this voucher:

• Income Support
• Income-Based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• Income-Based Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Universal Credit
• Pension Guarantee Credit (excluding Pension Savings Credit)
• Child Tax Credit
• Working Tax Credit
• Disability Living Allowance
• Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
• Attendance Allowance
• Carer’s Allowance
• Severe Disablement Allowance
• Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefits
• Contribution-Based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• Contribution-Based Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Housing Benefit

Local authorities can apply to use the scheme to support households with an income of less than £30,000.