New rules unveiled for Green Homes Grant

Tradespeople hoping to carry out housing upgrades under the UK government's £2bn Green Homes Grant will first have to register for TrustMark accreditation, new rules announced yesterday have confirmed.

The grant programme is scheduled to go live at the end of next month, and will see the government fund up to two-thirds of the cost of improvements for over 600,000 homes.

Upgrades will range from insulation of walls, floors and roofs, to the installation of low-carbon heating, like heat pumps or solar thermal systems – measures that could help homeowners save up to £600 a year on energy bills.

Low-income households will be able to receive funds covering 100% of the cost of the improvements, up to a maximum of £10,000.

Business and energy secretary Alok Sharma said: “Green home improvements will save people money on their energy bills, help to cut carbon emissions, and create new work for many thousands of builders, plumbers and other tradespeople.

“Our TrustMark scheme will guarantee that building work is completed to a high standard by accredited tradespeople, ensuring consumers are fully protected.“

The government also unveiled £1.3bn of investment to deliver upgrades to local infrastructure and boost skills to help fuel a green economic recovery from the COVID-19 crisis.

Over 300 successful projects in England will receive a share of the £900m Getting Building Fund to invest in 'shovel-ready' housing and infrastructure projects, creating jobs and economic growth across the country.

These include £23m for phase one of the development of commercial space at Mayfield Park in Greater Manchester, £14.88m to accelerate the National Brownfield Land Institute project, and £12m to support a new high-speed railway station in Thanet.

The investment is expected to deliver up to 45,000 homes, create up to 85,000 jobs and reduce around 65 million kgs of CO2 emissions across England.

This government is determined to level up all parts of the country and this funding will not only give a much needed boost to our economic recovery, it will help build the good quality, affordable homes the country needs.

Housing secretary Robert Jenrick said: “This government is determined to level up all parts of the country and this funding will not only give a much needed boost to our economic recovery, it will help build the good quality, affordable homes the country needs.“

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