Around 300 properties in Stretham could benefit from a new scheme to help people make energy efficiency improvements to their owned or rented homes.

Members of East Cambridgeshire District Council’s home energy team have written to occupiers and will be out and about in the village from the 20 to 22 March to identify properties that quality for the fully funded scheme.

Energy inefficient homes cost more money to heat and contribute to the climate crisis. It is also widely recognised that poorly insulated and heated homes have a direct and negative impact on the health and wellbeing of people living in them, particularly those who are ill or immobile.

East Cambridgeshire District Council has secured Home Upgrade Grant (HUG) 2 funding from the government to enable it to offer full funding to eligible homeowners and private renters living in non-gas heated homes.

The grants can be used to install measures such as loft, cavity, room in roof and external wall insulation and some clean heating and energy producing solutions such as Air Source Heat Pumps and Solar PV. 

Eligibility is dependent on two conditions:

• homes must have an Energy Performance Certificate rating of D-G (the council can check this for you or log onto Find an energy certificate - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
• gross household income must be below, or in the region of £36,000 per year or, a member of the household must be in receipt of an eligible means tested benefit. 

The council can also assess whether people are eligible for alternative schemes such as ECO4 and ECO4 flex.

All work carried out on eligible properties will be undertaken by one of the council’s preferred contractors.

The Home Energy Team also provides guidance about how to improve the thermal comfort of homes and can offer advice and support to people who are struggling to pay their energy bills.

Stretham is the second village to be visited by the council under the scheme. Last year the council liaised with residents living in 400 eligible properties in Haddenham.

Lisa Eves from the Home Energy Team said: “Increasing the energy efficiency of your home is important, both for you and the environment. As well as helping to lower energy bills and increasing your comfort, it can also play a part in protecting your health. This can be done in many ways such as changing your main heat source to one that is more eco-friendly to installing retrofit measures that increase the insulation of your home.

“While we often see most of the benefits in winter, such as keeping your home warm at a lower cost, in the summer months it is easier for a well-insulated house to stay at a comfortable temperature.”

For more information contact the Home Energy Team on 01353 665555 to discuss further or to check if your property has an EPC.