Housing support and financial assistance

Home Upgrade Grant

Last year the scheme helped 336 people save an average of £610 on their annual energy bills.

Apply for funding to help lower your energy costs in 2024 (Based on similar usage year on year and fluctuating energy costs).

Your council is giving you the opportunity to lower your energy bills and live in a warmer home for zero cost with the Home Upgrade Grant.

The Home Upgrade Grant may be able to provide you with FREE improvements to your home funded by your local council. This scheme is for homes that are heated mainly by electric, oil, coal or wood (not gas heating).

North Lincolnshire Council are working with community interest company YES Energy Solutions to help you have a warm efficient home with energy efficient upgrades for your home. YES Energy Solutions will be with you every step of the way as they plan out the best way to improve your home’s efficiency and lower your energy bills with their accredited installers.

With the current cost of living crisis, and rising energy costs – it’s never too early to get your home prepared for winter with upgrading your home through the Home Upgrade Grant.

You may be eligible for the grant if the below applies to you:

• You have a gross annual household income of £36,000 or less, or someone in the property receives a means tested benefit.
• Your home is not heated by gas and your Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)is in band D or below.

Government funding for energy efficiency improvements is particularly aimed at low-income households living in properties with an energy performance rating of E, F or G.

Energy Efficiency Improvement Funding is being delivered through the following schemes:

• ECO4 and ECO Flex (Energy Company Obligation) Central Government funding:
  • Funding for households on a low income and in receipt of a qualifying means tested benefit. This funding can provide insulation and first-time central heating to qualifying households subject to survey and household eligibility. Further information is available on the Energy Saving Advice centre website. To find an ECO supplier and their contact details visit the Ofgem website.
• LAD (Local Authority Delivery) Funding and HUG (Home Upgrade Grant) funding:
  • This funding is being delivered and managed on behalf of North Lincolnshire Council by YES Energy Solutions. To confirm eligibility for funding through these government schemes your details will be passed to our delivery partner.

YES Energy Solutions will make contact with you to carryout eligibility checks which will include a survey of your home. You will be advised what, if any, measures can be funded through the LAD or HUG schemes.

Please note if you live in social housing i.e ONGO Homes, you should contact your landlord to enquire about any funding that they may have to make energy efficiency improvements to your home.

Statement of Intent

ECO4 Flex Statement of Intent V5

ECO 4 Flex Statement of Intent V4 – withdrawn 24 August 2023 as superseded by version 5

ECO4 Flex Statement of Intent V3 – published 17 July 2023, withdrawn 24 August 2023 as superseded by version 4

North Lincolnshire Council is committed to helping residents save money on their energy bills, which is why we are promoting this collective switching opportunity to encourage you to register your interest.

What is collective energy switching?

Energy switching is not a new concept; however, we see that 55 percent of people have not switched in the last three years. This means your supplier defaults you onto a ‘Standard Variable Tariff’. Collective energy switching uses the bargaining power of your community to get a competitive offer for you. iChoosr invite pre-vetted energy suppliers and ask them to underbid each other to ensure you get a competitive offer. This service is free, and there is no obligation to switch to the winning supplier once you receive your personal offer.

Register your interest between 22 May 2023 and 20 June 2023 by completing the online registration form with your details, current energy supplier and your gas and electricity consumption – this information will be on your latest bill.

To register now, go to the Big Community Switch North Lincolnshire website.

Alternatively, you can register offline by calling the Big Community Switch on 0800 0488 439. (Mon to Fri, 8am to 5pm) This line is not run by North Lincolnshire Council but by our Big Community Switch partner iChoosr.

The winning supplier will be the one making the lowest offer, and the more households that take part the greater the negotiating power.

Everyone who has registered will be contacted after 3 July 2023 to tell them about the offer and how much money they can potentially save. There is no obligation to take up the offer, but if you decide to accept you have until 31 July 2023 to let iChoosr know.

iChoosr takes care of the switch – it won’t involve engineers calling at your home, you will simply receive a notification when it has gone through.

For further information on how the scheme works visit the Big Community Switch website.

Participating Dates for June 2023 Auction:

• Registration opens 22 May 2023
• Auction Date 21 June 2023
• Offer sent from 3 July 2023
• Acceptance closes 31 July 2023.

Everyone is entitled to live in a home, which is warm, has modern facilities and is in a good state of repair. There is a minimum standard that housing associations and registered social landlords have to meet.

The Decent Homes Standard on Gov.UK sets out the definition of what a decent home is. It includes guidance on how the decent homes standard should be implemented.

An energy performance certificate (EPC) will show how easy your property is to heat and give you an indication of the annual heating costs. The certificate also includes an environmental C02 rating that indicates your home’s impact on the environment in terms of carbon dioxide emissions as well as the potential for improvement.

Any properties now being advertised for rent, or if your home is put on the market for sale, must have an energy performance certificate (EPC). This must be available for a tenant and prospective tenants or prospective buyers to see.

An EPC is required by law when a building is built, sold or put up for rent. If you are a landlord or homeowner and need to provide an EPC, you’ll need to contact an accredited domestic energy assessor. They will carry out the assessment and produce the certificate.

For further information see the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) on Gov.UK

Saving energy

Whether you’re a landlord, tenant or homeowner there are many ways of saving energy and making your home more energy efficient.

You could get a Disabled Facilities Grant from the council if you’re disabled and need to make changes to your home, for example to widen doors and install ramps or improve access to rooms and facilities. For further information see Disabled Facilities Grant on Gov.UK. The Foundations website explains more about the grant and how it works. Their video also gives a brief overview of the main facts of the grant.

How the grant is calculated

All Disabled Facilities Grants for adults are means tested. If you are in receipt of certain passported benefits (evidence of receipt will be required) you will not have to go through the full means test process, and you will not have a contribution to pay towards the cost of the adaptations.  The Foundations website explains more about the calculator for the means test. The means test does not apply to cases where the adaptations are for a child (under 16 years old) or a young person (over 16 but under 20 who is in full time education). The maximum Mandatory Disabled Facilities Grant is £30,000.

Conditions of the grant

For owner occupiers only – if the grant exceeds £5,000 there will be conditions attached stating that if the property is disposed of whether by sale, assignment, transfer or otherwise within a 10 year period then all monies over £5,000 (five thousand) up to a maximum of £10,000 (ten thousand) will be repayable to North Lincolnshire Council.

In all cases – North Lincolnshire Council is not liable for any costs of removal of any equipment/adaptations provided or making good decoration when removed by others. Landlords especially should consider this before providing consent.

Where equipment is installed – the grant will generally provide a five year warranty. After this period has lapsed, the responsibility for servicing and costs for repairs are the responsibility of the homeowner/tenant. This is not applicable to all tenants. Some larger landlords have their own arrangements in place for servicing etc. You should follow this up with your landlord before applying for the grant. The grant does not cover repairs to existing facilities.

Apply for the grant

Adaptations for an adult – please contact the Independent Living Service on 01724 297000 option 4 and then option 2 where you can leave a message and a member of the team will return your call. An online enquiry can be made by completing the relevant form on the Staying Independent page. Please note, there is a form for the general public and a separate forms for professionals to use.

Adaptations for a child/young person, parents can e-mail details to nlg-tr.NLChildrensTherapyTeam@nhs.net  or call on 01724 203755.

If you require any further information or wish to discuss your individual circumstances, please contact us.

The handyperson scheme can carry out minor adaptations to your property such as:

• Improvements to access – adding small ramps, extra steps or external handrails.
• Internal works – fitting internal grab rails, an extra bannister rail or sofa/ bed raisers.

To request minor adaptations to your property

An online enquiry can be made by completing the relevant form on the Staying Independent page. Please note, there is a form for the general public and a separate forms for professionals to use.

We want to ensure that homes are safe, warm and weather-proof for those who are most vulnerable. We offer the Home Appreciation Loan, which has no monthly repayments, to help vulnerable homeowners to maintain their homes. The loan can be used to help with the cost of serious repairs which are affecting their health and/or safety. This loan can also be used to support Disabled Facilities Grants, where additional funding is required over the available grant maximum, or to pay for a means tested contribution. Applications for provision of adaptations to access essential facilities and to future proof dwellings will also be considered.

The main criteria for the loan includes :

• You are over 18 years of age (there is no upper age limit).
• You own the property, it is your main residence and you plan to continue to live there for the duration of the loan.
• You are either age 60 or over, in receipt of a means tested benefit or on a low income or are unable to access a commercial loan.
• You have sufficient equity available in the property to loan against.
• And you have home buildings insurance in place.

Loan amount

The minimum amount is £2,000 and the maximum loan amount is up to £30,000 although this is dependent on the equity available and what the loan is being used for. The council do charge a fee for the arranging of the loan and this can be included in the loan if needed.

Repayment

The Home Appreciation Loan is not a grant – it is a loan against the equity in your property. There are no monthly repayments to be made but monies do need to be paid back. Although no interest is charged on the loan, if the value of the property has increased at the point the loan needs to be repaid, then more will need to be paid back. The loan would need to be repaid when the resident owner/s are no longer owning and living in the property (eg, either because they move and sell the property, transfer the ownership to somebody else or when they die).

Loans for boiler repairs/replacements

The Home Cheque Loan is a council-backed loan operated in partnership with the Northern Lincolnshire Credit Union. This is an interest free loan which is specifically for heating repairs and replacements. It is only available to those who are referred to the Credit Union by the Council. Eligibility for the loan is at the discretion of the Credit Union and will be dependent on an individual’s circumstances.

North Lincolnshire Credit Union

The Credit Union also offer a standard loan which can be used for home improvements. This does have interest added and there will be monthly repayments to be made. More details can be found on the North Lincolnshire Credit Union website.

We work with the Humber and Wolds Rural Community Council to offer an oil bulk buying scheme. For further information or to join visit Humber and Wolds Rural Community Council.

A cold home is one that cannot be economically maintained at temperatures of 18⁰C to 21⁰C.  Even when it is -1⁰C outside, the heating system should be capable of maintaining these temperatures inside the home. Homes that have an F or G rating for energy performance cannot be economically maintained at between 18 and 21⁰C. People who live in cold homes are at a higher risk of becoming ill. If a property does not have adequate heating it can be danger to health of all the people who live there. Older residents are the most at risk if they cannot keep their homes warm. If a household has to spend more than 10 per cent of their income on heating they are classed as being in fuel poverty. If you make your home more energy efficient it will cost you less to heat it, meaning you can keep warm and save money.

If you rent your home and think it is too cold, you can ask your landlord to make improvements. If they refuse you can contact us for advice. Private tenants and homeowners may be able to get a grant for insulation and possibly heating improvements. Insulating your home will make it cheaper to keep warm.

If you are a landlord, you should aim to achieve an energy efficiency rating of D (the average) or higher for your rented properties. You need to provide an affordable heating system that is capable of achieving temperatures of between 18⁰C and 21⁰C. Systems must be well maintained and tenants should be shown how to use them effectively.

For information on keeping your home warm see the heating your home page on the Energy Saving Trust website

Dampness in the home can be a major problem. It can cause mould on walls and furniture and make timber window frames and floors rot. It can encourage the growth of house dust mites and increase the risk of respiratory illness.

For information on the causes of mould and how to treat it see the fixing damp and condensation page on the Energy Saving Trust website.

There are a number of reasons why properties become empty. They may be in the process of being sold, let, refurbished or inherited. However, empty homes tend to attract crime and anti-social behaviour. They are at a greater risk of arson attacks and vandalism. This can reduce the value of nearby properties and create a cause for concern for local residents.

If you are the owner of an empty property, we can offer free independent advice on ways of bringing it back into use. These areas include:

• letting the property – by using a managing agent or by becoming a private landlord and letting the property yourself
• selling the property – either through an estate agent, at auction or by advertising it yourself
• refurbishing the property for you or family members to live in, or to make the property suitable for letting

Our home energy conservation strategy aims to improve domestic energy efficiency by 30 per cent within 10 years, in particular to:

• Develop information collection systems to not only monitor progress towards achieving energy efficiency improvements but also to identify priority areas for targeting improvements.
• Provide advice and guidance on energy efficiency and energy conservation to all householders.
• Identify and seek to secure funding from any available source to promote energy efficiency and provide energy efficiency measures.
• Continue and further encourage the development of partnerships, with local statutory and voluntary organisations who have an interest in health and housing, welfare and energy efficiency.
• Promote and facilitate the uptake of New Home Energy Efficiency Scheme and other energy efficiency schemes through effective promotion and networking.
• Seek to ensure that members of staff and others in the local community can undertake appropriate training for both giving advice and carrying out energy surveys for properties.
• Develop links with educational bodies to promote energy efficiency as an integral part of the curriculum.
• Seek to establish better communication with statutory and other bodies to respond to and where appropriate, influence energy efficiency policy.
• Provide grants to improve the energy efficiency of the vulnerable households in other sectors of housing.

Please contact us for a copy of the full report.

The Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) is a risk-based evaluation tool to help us identify and consider the effect of any hazards in a property. There are 29 hazards that can be identified by the system – including excess cold, fire hazards and falls on the stairs. The system applies to all dwellings including:

• Owner occupied
• Privately rented
• Housing association

Councils have a duty to keep the housing conditions in privately owned property under review, together with a duty to inspect a property to determine if any health and safety hazards exist.

Please contact us for further information.