Warming up for energy savings

RAIN, sleet, snow.

- Edited by DEBORAH STONE

We've had our fair share of weather this winter so it's fitting that the Government launched its new Warm Homes Plan at the end of last month to encourage more people to improve insulation and lower energy costs in their homes.Key points include £15billion of public funds for insulation, heat pumps and solar panels, with £7,500 grants and zero-interest loans available for low-income households to replace boilers with heat pumps. It’s hoped that by 2030 one million families will be lifted out of fuel poverty.

The majority of new-build homes must have solar panels fitted as standard by 2027, but it’s the difficulty of retrofitting existing housing stock that has proved challenging for the past decade or more, despite government initiatives.