The Warm Homes Plan: what £15 billion actually buys you
Written by Danny Whitfield
Heating and energy writer · Last updated 13 July 2026
Checked against GOV.UK: 10 July 2026 · Last verified: 13 July 2026
The Warm Homes Plan is the government's £15 billion plan to upgrade up to 5 million UK homes by 2030. It is the umbrella over the grants you can already claim, the £7,500 Boiler Upgrade Scheme, fully funded work through ECO4 and the Warm Homes: Local Grant, and it adds a new low-interest loan scheme for heat pumps, solar and batteries that is being phased in from 2026.
It is easy to read "Warm Homes Plan" and expect a single form to fill in. There is not one. The Plan is the pot of money and the set of rules behind the schemes, so what you actually do is claim the individual grant that fits your home. Here is what the money is split into and which parts you can use today.
What is in the Warm Homes Plan
| Part of the Plan | Funding | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| Boiler Upgrade Scheme | £2.7bn | £7,500 off a heat pump, £9,000 for oil or LPG homes from 21 July 2026. No income test. |
| Low-income grants | £5bn | Fully funded heating, insulation and solar through the Warm Homes: Local Grant and the Social Housing Fund. |
| New consumer loans | £2bn+ | Zero and low-interest finance for heat pumps, solar and batteries. Phased in from 2026. |
| Heat networks | £1.1bn | Shared low-carbon heating for streets and blocks of flats. |
Checked against GOV.UK: 10 July 2026
What you can claim right now
Three of the four parts are already open. If you own your home in England or Wales, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme takes £7,500 off a heat pump with no income test, rising to £9,000 for oil and LPG homes from 21 July 2026. If someone in the household is on a qualifying benefit, ECO4 can fund the whole job. And if your household income is under £36,000 with an EPC of D to G, the Warm Homes: Local Grant can fully fund improvements through your council. Our eligibility checker tells you which one fits in about 60 seconds.
What is coming: the loan scheme
The genuinely new part is the loan pot: £2 billion of zero and low-interest finance for heat pumps, solar panels and batteries, with a further £300 million of government support behind it. It is being phased in from 2026, aimed at households who do not qualify for a full grant but want to spread the cost of the part they pay themselves. The detail that matters, the interest rates, the loan terms and how to apply, is expected later in 2026, so treat any specific figure you see before then with caution. We will update this page when the rules are published.
Two other changes worth knowing
- A bill cut from April 2026. The Plan pairs with an average £150 reduction on electricity bills beginning April 2026, from moving policy costs off electricity.
- Rented homes must improve by 2030. Private rented properties will need to reach EPC band C by October 2030, which is why landlords are a growing part of who claims these grants.
Where the Plan applies
The Warm Homes Plan and its grants run in England, and the Boiler Upgrade Scheme reaches Wales too. Scotland and Northern Ireland set their own energy policy and run separate schemes. For the version where you live, see heating grants in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland.