Energy saving home improvements
Cost of living crisis: find out what help is available
We offer a variety of schemes to support people who have difficulty paying their fuel bills or keeping their home warm.
These schemes help to increase the take-up of home energy efficiency measures and reduce fuel poverty, while also helping us reach our carbon emission reduction targets.
The Energy Saving Trust, in partnership with advice providers and energy companies, manages these schemes on our behalf through Home Energy Scotland.
Home Energy Efficiency Programmes for Scotland (HEEPS): area-based schemes
We fund local authorities to develop and deliver energy efficiency programmes (mainly solid wall insulation) in areas with high levels of fuel poverty. This funding is blended with Energy Company Obligation funding, owners contributions and funding from registered social landlords who may choose to insulate their homes at the same time.
The area-based schemes are designed and delivered by councils with local delivery partners. They target fuel-poor areas to provide energy efficiency measures to a large number of Scottish homes while delivering emission savings and helping reduce fuel poverty.
Since 2013 we have helped to deliver energy efficiency measures to over 100,000 households. Including 2021/2022 allocations we have made available over £482 million to local authorities.
Find out more about our area-based schemes budgets and outputs
We have published case studies about the Area Based Schemes programme and templates for local authorities to submit further case studies. See images of properties that have benefited from HEEPS funding.
Energy Efficient Scotland: Warmer Homes Scotland
This national scheme was launched in September 2015 and since then it has helped over 25,000 fuel-poor households across Scotland. It is available to households (owner-occupiers and some private rented sector tenants) who are living in or at risk of fuel poverty and who meet the qualifying eligibility criteria.
Warmer Homes Scotland has a strong focus on heating and insulation measures to improve the energy efficiency of properties making them warmer and more affordable to heat. Renewable and micro-generation measures have been made available, including ground source heat pumps, micro-wind, micro-hydro and micro-CHP systems.
More information on the scheme, including how to apply, is available on the Home Energy Scotland website.
Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan Scheme
The Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan Scheme offers homeowners and self-builders in Scotland a grant, interest free loan or a combination of both to support the installation of clean heating systems and energy efficiency measures.
Clean heating systems
For clean heating systems such as heat pumps, grant funding of up to £7,500 is available, with an additional £7,500 of funding available as an optional interest free loan.
For energy efficiency measures
For energy efficiency measures such as insulation, grant funding is available up to 75% of the combined cost of measures up to a maximum grant amount of £7,500. An additional £7,500 of funding is available as an optional interest free loan.
An uplift of £1,500 is available for rural and island homes to both the clean heating and energy efficiency grants, meaning rural households can claim up to £18,000 in grant funding.
More information on the Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan Scheme, including how to apply, is available from the Home Energy Scotland website.