Tees Valley residents are set to benefit from energy efficiency upgrades after nearly £14 million was awarded to a consortium involving Darlington, Middlesbrough, Redcar & Cleveland and Stockton councils.
The funding – totalling £13,953,865 – comes from the government’s new Warm Homes: Local Grant scheme, which could help up to 700 households lower their energy bills and improve their homes.
Funds will be targeted towards low-income households, with thousands of families nationally set to receive energy performance and clean heating upgrades in the form of insulation, solar panels and heat pumps.
At a time when many are experiencing high energy bills driven by the UK’s reliance on international gas markets, this funding through the Warm Homes: Local Grant scheme could now help households save hundreds of pounds a year.
The Warm Homes: Local Grant will be delivered over three years from 2025 and will provide energy performance upgrades and low carbon heating to eligible privately owned households.
Many households will quality on postcode eligibility alone with other residents being able to quality on their household income.
Judith Hedgley, Middlesbrough Council’s Head of Public Protection, said: “The Warm Homes scheme will enable improvements to be made to privately owned properties, which includes home owners and landlords, that have lower energy efficiency standards and occupied by households with low incomes.
“The Public Protection Service provides support to tenants and landlords to achieve improvements in the private rented sector, ensuring that dwellings are safe and provide a reasonable standard of comfort, and comply with minimum energy efficient standards.”
Councillor Janet Thompson, Middlesbrough Council’s Executive member for Neighbourhoods, said: “Energy funding being provided for residents could be life changing in improving home comfort, reducing energy costs and in helping tackle climate change across the Tees Valley.”
· Further information on how to apply for help through the scheme will be announced in due course.
Updates when available will be published on the website at www.darlington.gov.uk/homeenergy.
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