Housing Retrofit

What is an air source heat pump?

An air source heat pump (sometimes referred to as an air-to-water heat pump) transfers heat from the outside air to water. This in turn heats rooms in your home via radiators or underfloor heating. It can also heat water stored in a hot water cylinder for your hot taps, showers, and baths.

How does an air source heat pump work?

Heat from the air is absorbed into a fluid. This fluid then passes through a heat exchanger into the heat pump, which raises the temperature and then transfers that heat to water. 

What is Cavity Wall Insulation?

About a third of all the heat lost in an uninsulated home escapes through the walls. By properly insulating cavity walls, you will save energy and cut costs off your heating bill. 

In general, houses built from the 1990s onwards have wall insulation to keep the heat in, but if your house is older than that, it may not have any wall insulation at all. 

What is a ground source heat pump?

A ground source heat pump (also known as a ground-to-water heat pump) transfers heat from the ground outside your home to heat your radiators or underfloor heating. It can also heat water stored in a hot water cylinder, ready to use for your hot taps and showers.

How does a ground source heat pump work?

Thermal transfer fluid (TTF), sometimes known as ‘brine,’ is a mixture of water and antifreeze that flows around a loop of pipe buried in your garden or outdoor space. This loop could either be a long or coiled pipe buried in trenches, or a long loop (called a ‘probe’) inserted into a borehole. 

Heat from the ground is absorbed into the brine, which then passes through a heat exchanger into the heat pump. This raises the temperature of the fluid and then transfers that heat to water. 

What are solar panels?

Solar electricity panels, also known as photovoltaics (PV), capture the sun’s energy and convert it into electricity that you can use in your home. 

By installing solar panels, you can generate your own renewable electricity. 

How do solar panels work?

A solar PV panel consists of many cells made from layers of semi-conducting material, most commonly silicon. When light shines on this material, a flow of electricity is created. 

The cells do not need direct sunlight to work and can even work on cloudy days. However, the stronger the sunshine, the more electricity generated. 

What are the benefits of internal wall insulation?

Internal wall insulation offers a thermal insulation solution for properties where cavities cannot be filled, or external wall insulation cannot be used. Internal wall insulation can dramatically reduce the likelihood of condensation on internal wall surfaces. 

Do internal walls need to be insulated?

Unfortunately, your home may not be offering an adequate barrier against heat loss, which usually means higher energy bills as you try to heat your home. 

If you are looking to reduce heat loss and improve energy efficiency, upgrading your internal wall insulation is an excellent way to make long-term savings and improve the comfort of your home. 

What Are the Benefits of External Wall Insulation?

If you are creating external wall insulation systems, you will get a lot of advantages beyond greater comfort and habitability. There are many more amazing benefits to external wall insulation including the following: 

• Lower fuel bills: External wall insulation has many of the same benefits as internal wall insulation, the main benefit of which being less energy consumption – so you can lower your fuel bills. 


• Less damp: Damp problems can affect any building, but insulation can help. A thick layer of insulation serves not only as a thermal warmer but also as a moisture barrier, which is great for mitigating the problems that can result from dampness. 


• Environmentally friendly: Insulation materials will make a building more energy-efficient, which is good for the environment. You get cooler summers and warmer winters from external wall insulation, so it is good for all seasons. 

What is Room in Roof Insulation?

Installing room in roof insulation involves insulation boarding being fitted in between the rafters underneath the existing plasterboard walls. 

Room in roof insulation works by trapping heat within your home to create a blanket effect. 

This allows you to maintain a warm home more easily without using as much energy to do so, saving you money on your energy bills. 

The Department of Energy Security and Net Zero also referred to as (DESNZ).

Frauds can be difficult to recognise, but there are some things that you can look out for. 

For example:

• Check the company number via Companies House. (click link) – Companies House – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) 


• Look for reviews/feedback or case studies they may be presenting


• Study the address information


• Email or call and speak to your Local Authority


• They will not ask for a financial contribution upfront if any, depending on the funding criteria set out by Central Government.  

Retrofitting will save you money over the long term from reduced bills. However, this will depend on what measures you have installed.  

When up taking retrofit funding a fabric first approach is always recommended because if your home is not well insulated but has a low carbon heating system installed, there may not be a reduction in bills as the heat loss from the buildings fabric will leave quicker and you are more likely to leave your heating on for longer.

Retrofitting your home is likely to increase its value and when it comes to selling your home or renting out a property, new owners or potential tenants could potentially be looking at the EPC banding to help identify if the property is warm and what the average energy bills will cost.

Works offered will depend on funding availability AND the outcome of technical surveys, but could include works that support for energy efficiency and/or low carbon technologies such as: 

Fabric First Measures:

• External wall insulation


• Internal wall insulation


• Cavity wall insulation


• Loft insulation

Renewable Energy/ Low Carbon Heating Measures:   

• Air Source Heat Pumps


• Ground Source Heat Pumps


• Solar photovoltaics (PV) panels

*All funding programmes will seek to take a ‘fabric first’ approach to housing retrofit. 

This is difficult to estimate and will depend on the type of upgrade offered and current condition of your home. Some upgrades may take longer to organise than others. For example, some may require planning permission and/or are weather-dependent. 

If needed, you will not need to pay or apply for planning yourself. 

You may have multiple surveys depending on the measure. Once your home has been surveyed and we have confirmed your grant, there is a formal compliance process to meet funding requirements. 

This happens in the background and does not require any input from you to complete. However, this can take several weeks to process, and must be done before the work can begin. From your initial application to installation, it could take several months or more. 

Government standards, known as PAS2035, mean that households who qualify for funded insulation must either have their existing ventilation upgraded or new additional ventilation installed in their homes. 

At survey stage, your home’s suitability for insulation and the ventilation needed will be assessed together. Should your property require any ventilation measures, they will be fitted at the same time as your insulation at no cost to you. 

Upgrades could include extractor fans, trickle vents on windows or gaps beneath internal doors. These allow air to move throughout your home keeping your home safe and healthy and can prevent problems such as condensation. 

If you meet the eligibility criteria of the funding offered, an appointment would be arranged for a Retrofit Assessor to attend your home. The assessor would carry out a whole-house assessment to confirm if your home needs any energy efficiency improvements and identify what the best type of improvements are for your home.

*Always refer to the eligibility check list of the funding programme. 

If an assessment finds that there are no improvements that can be made to your home within the project budget, you will still receive advice on saving energy in the home and an up-to-date EPC rating. 

Eligible households could receive funding towards renewable, low carbon technologies such as Solar Photovoltaics (PV), Solar Thermal (Hot Water) systems, and Air Source Heat Pumps, provided that the property has appropriate levels of insulation. If the required levels of insulation do not exist, funding will first be used to insulate the home to achieve a fabric first approach, as set out by Central Government. The viability of Air Source Heat Pumps will be considered following survey as to whether it is an appropriate replacement for the current heating system. 

This is a question that cannot be answered, as one size does not fit all. Your neighbour or family members property might look or had been built at the same time, however, how people live or how a property has been changed can vary the efficiency of each property. The Retrofit Assessor is trained and qualified to identify the best improvements for each individual property and will take a fabric first approach.

The ‘fabric first’ approach focuses on reducing a home’s heat loss, so that you can achieve low carbon emissions and a sustainable home that is affordable to heat. For example, if the fabric of a property is not insulated and a new heating system is installed, the heat will leave the property at a much quicker rate, and your energy bills will be higher. 

This will depend on the funding eligibility criteria as set by Central Government that we must follow, and the information you provide for the eligibility checks, carried out to the delivery contractor. Your tenant may also need to provide information, such as income. 

For private rented sector properties, tenants must meet the funding criteria set and the landlord may be required to contribute to the cost of upgrades. This will all depend on the funding eligibility criteria. 

To receive funding, you must meet the eligibility criteria. If you do not achieve the criteria, you will not be eligible for funding. 

Eligibility for home improvements can also be determined once a retrofit assessment has been completed. Below are some other common reasons for unsuccessful applications: 

EPC rating too high: Properties rated EPC band A, B and C do not qualify for funding because the programme aims to upgrade the most inefficient properties first. Property unsuitable: Not all homes are suitable for certain energy efficiency measures. A survey will be completed to determine what improvements your property needs from what is available under this scheme. Access difficulties: Your application may be cancelled if installers are unable to access relevant parts of your property safely. This could be due to narrow passageways or not enough room to erect scaffolding. For health and safety, loft spaces with small loft hatches are often declined for measures such as loft insulation. Planning constraints: Some measures may not be appropriate for your property due planning restrictions. For example, we may encounter planning restrictions if your property is listed or in a conservation area. 

Yes. The scheme covers a wide range of energy efficiency improvements which, once installed, will help to reduce carbon emissions, and improve The City Region’s air quality. The amount of carbon dioxide saved, for example, will depend on the measures that are installed and how much energy you currently use.

To check if you meet the eligibility criteria you will need to provide proof of ownership of your home such as land registry title. If your property is within the eligible postcode, you will not need to provide any income evidence but if your property is a non-eligible postcode property you will need to provide proof of benefits or payslips. Private Landlords must declare that they have not received subsidy over the Minimal Financial Assistance limit of £315,000 (including the value of HUG2 support to be given, and any previous assistance given to the landlords over the current and previous 2 budget years). 

If your property has been approved for improvements, you will be asked to sign a Homeowner Retrofit Agreement before any work starts. This is a legally binding agreement that sets out the work being offered to your home, and the agreed terms and conditions that all parties will be required to follow. 

The government sets out the conditions for all funding programmes. In the instance where the funding cannot help all those who have applied, we can signpost you to other funding programmes or if we are successful with future funding bids and you meet the eligibility criteria, offer those potential funding to you soon. 

Most funding is available on a first-come first-serve basis, subject to availability. Installations must be complete within the funding programme timescales and works carried out after this date will be ineligible for funding unless an official extension is granted by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ).

Please refer to LCRCA Retrofit current funding section to identify the current programmes we are running at present. The amount of funding that can be spent on each property that is eligible will depend on the type of property, the type of heating and the property’s current condition.