Double Glazing Grants 2022 UK

Double glazing grants 2022. There’s a huge focus on energy efficiency in UK homes right now. A well publicised UK Government net zero strategy. A drive towards carbon neutral by 2050. And stretch targets aimed at reducing carbon emissions by 68% by 2030.

On top of that we’re in a fuel crisis that’s resulting in energy costs spiralling out of control to the point when many households now find themselves in fuel poverty and having to choose between fuel and food. That means a drive for the installation of energy efficiency measures. Both in new build houses and through the retrofit of existing properties.

The Government are providing financial support in certain cases and we’re likely to see new grant schemes evolve over the coming months. But what does this mean for double glazing grants in 2022 and onwards though?

Certainly, double glazing has its part to play in cutting energy costs. Quite frankly though, it seems nowhere near the top of the favourite measures list! And it certainly doesn’t appear to be judged worthy of a straight forward, stand alone double glazing grant! However, it can, in certain cases, form a part of a package of measures included within an overall grant funded program of energy efficiency measures. Particularly if you’re upgrading from single glazing.

To be honest though it’s not looking great for UK double glazing grants in 2022! That said, there are a few options so read on …

The Fuel Crisis, Political Changes & Double Glazing Grants 2022

No one could have predicyed the current fuel crisis at the beginning of the year yet here we are in the heart of the storm with massively increased costs in home heating and energy with little improvement on the horizon. Sucjh a situation has not been helped by the political uncertainty and teh election of a new Prime Minister. At least we have an energy cap now along with a little in the way of financial support towards the cost of home heating but this winter is going to be particularly challenging for a vast proportion of us in the UK.

That’s why it’s important to act now to try to reduce energy costs and one sure fire way to reduce energy consumption is to replace any single glazed windows with double glazing.

The Government has actually set up a new calculator which enables you to input the details of your home and throw out recomendations of emergy efficiency measures you should consider along with eth approximate cost of each measure and the estimated annual saving you could make. Double glazing is obviously included within the measures calculated – Find ways to save energy in your home >.

Double glazing grants may then be available and the best place to start is to contact your local authority who MAY have grants towards the cost of double glazing available. You can read a good feature called How to apply for a £10,000 energy efficiency grant to improve your home.

Double Glazing As An Energy Efficiency Measure In 2022

​Let’s face it, when it comes to new build residential properties highly efficient double glazing is pretty much always included within the build spec so there’s no need for or reason why the government should throw money in that direction. The big gains can be achieved through retrofit, refurbishment and by providing financial incentives to encourages property managers and owners to upgrade existing properties.

In 2022 the focus of this has switched more towards a “whole house approach”. This means it’s the norm for each property to be energy efficiency assessed on its own merit as a complete building. The result being that a complete package of energy efficiency measures can be specified to give the best impact across all aspects of the whole building. Typically this will include an assessment of the building fabric, insulation, heating and micro generation.

Double glazing will be included as will external doors (usually under the insulation category) but the main focus will be on the measures which will deliver the greatest impact … insulation, heat pumps, solar panels etc.

Double Glazing Grants UK 2022 – An Industry Left Out In The Cold!

With such a high level of focus on home improvements through the installation of energy efficiency measures and more and more money being pumped into the retrofit market why are double glazing grants so hard to access in 2022?

The simple answer is that if you have single glazing and you’re looking to upgrade to double that’s going to make a massive positive impact. The Government will encourage you to make these improvements so you’re more likely to find grant funding for this. However, the vast majority of homes now already have double glazing. So, any upgrade to new windows is not seen as making a major impact to energy efficiency. The focus therefore is on adding insulation, heat pumps and other measures which will deliver maximum impact.

This is where the glazing industry needs to step in – and it’s doing just that! Double glazing is no different to any other product – it’s evolved and developed significantly over the years. Modern systems are so much more efficient than older units. If the industry can prove that upgrading to a modern system is going to save a significant amount of energy then acees to grant funding will surely be opened up. Similar to the boiler scheme … we all know that upgrading to a modern boiler is going to save energy and money … the double glazing industry needs to convince the powers that be that upgrading windows and doors is going to have the same impact.

Double Glazing Grants UK 2022 – Overview (Excluding Northern Ireland)

So, just what double glazing grants are available in 2022?

There are a number of initiatives which may include grants for windows and doors from the government in 2022. Some of which are run by central government and cover the whole of the UK. Others are country specific initiatives operated by individual administrations.

Whilst there’s nothing specifically designed as a stand alone double glazing grant, funding for replacement windows are included within certain schemes. We’ve covered these schemes below:

Green Homes Grant

The ill-fated Green Homes Grant is now officially dead! Homeowners whoreceived a voucher had until the end of March 2022 to get their upgrades completed. No further applications can now be made. You can read about the scheme but, as I said, it’s over now. It represents no further opportunity for double glazing grants.

Energy Company Obligation (ECO)

The long standing Energy Company Obligation (known as ECO) is a GB wide grant scheme that aims to support households in receipt of certain benefits. It’s administered through the largest energy companies who are obliged to install energy efficiency measures in the homes of those who need them most but who maybe can’t afford it. All suppliers then pass on the costs to their customers through a levy on energy bills, particularly electricity bills. The target is to reduce carbon emissions and help the UK meet carbon reduction targets.

ECO first started back in 2013. So far it’s estimated that 3.1 million measures have been installed in over 2.3 million homes. The good news is that it’s been extended further. From 2022 to 2026 – and likely beyond that too. As this is the forth review the new 2022 grant scheme is called ECO4. It was scheduled to come into effect from 1^st April 2022 but a delay means that it’s hitting the market in the second half of 2022.

Up to now the ECO scheme has prioritised the “low hanging fruits” by picking off the low cost measures like cavity and loft insulation. But now that so many of these measures are already installed it’s the harder to treat properties which are now forming the majority.

ECO4

As we update this in July 2022, the final ECO4 framework is, at last, pretty much finalised. It’s completing it’s final journet through the official legislative channels prior to start. We’re virtually over the line now … legislation is now laid in Parliament and Ofgem draft guidelines for ECO4 have been published.

Eligibility criteria has changed slightly. As, we know, ECO grant funding is aimed at households in receipt of certain benefits. A number of benefits previously accepted under ECO3 will no longer be eligible under ECO4. The new list of eligible benefits are as follows:

• Income based Jobseeker allowance,
• The Income related Employment & Support Allowance,
• Income Support,
• Pension Credit Guarantee Credit,
• Working Tax Credit,
• Universal Credit,
• Housing Benefit,
• Pension Credit Savings Credit.

Double Glazing Grants 2022 Under ECO4

Energy efficiency measures included within the ECO scheme are very diverse and wide ranging. They all however have to fit into one of the three categories mentioned earlier: Insulation, Heating and Microgeneration.

Window glazing along with high performance external doors are included within the insulation category. But it should be noted that any improvements made under ECO need to be tackled on a “whole house” approach under the adopted PAS2035 framework. Nevertheless, if you fit the criteria then it’s a grant you don’t want to miss out on. AND it can include double glazing.

Double Glazing Grants From Government 2022 UK – Where To Start

Check out the specific availability for double glazing grants for windows and doors from government 2022 on a UK and country by country basis or visit the following websites:

https://www.simpleenergyadvice.org.uk/pages/energy-company-obligation

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/information-consumers/energy-advice-households

https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/energy-at-home/financial-support/financial-support-for-home-energy/

https://www.gov.uk/improve-energy-efficiency

Double Glazing Grants 2022 England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland

In the tabs below we’ve detailed the different grants available by the individual countries of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, Simpy click on each tab to read on:

Double Glazing Grants – A Light On The Horizon???

As you’ll see from the above, most of the focus of energy efficiency and double glazing grants is centred around fuel poverty (and rightly so). However, if the gossip within the industry and Westminster is to be believed, it looks like a wider scheme is being considered. And this will potentially target the refurbishment of all properties. This would include the “able to pay” and privately owned market. It’s likely any scheme would be run under the current ECO scheme administrative framework as it’s known to work and would speed up the delivery. Very early days but this concept does appear to be gaining momentum. We are watching developments closely.

All we know so far is that a scheme is definately being considered which will provide energy efficiency grant funding for the low-mid earning owner-occupiers. Will this include double glazing grants? We expect so (at least to some degree. But let’s hope that it  includes upgrades from old double glazing to new, modern and effcient systems too.

Could it be that good news is coming shortly? Fingers crossed!

UK Double Glazing Grants 2022 In Summary

So, what have we learnt about UK double glazing grants 2022? We know that the outlook is not great if you’re just looking to upgrade your windows. This is because the current grant funding is very much aimed towards a whole house approach to optimise the energy efficiency measures taken to make your home more efficient and to lower the carbon footprint. The focus is also on hard to treat homes and those in fuel poverty (and rightly so one could say).

That said,  if you’re looking at the whole fabric of your property then there could be improvement grants available which may save you a good deal of money … but not necessarily on double glazing.

The onus is therefore very much on the UK double glazing industry to stimulate the market. So, double glazing grants or not, we can expect some good offers and competitive finance packages coming through so shop around and bag a great deal.

As ever, we’ll keep you updated should anything change in relation to double glazing grants as we go through 2022.