Applying for Warm Homes: Local Grant in Liverpool

Step one

Registering through the GOV.UK portal

Liverpool City Council's page is clear that interest must be registered through the official government referral portal, linked from its page and from GOV.UK. It says it can't accept applications or expressions of interest made directly to its Healthy Homes team, by email or by phone.

The portal asks about the home and the household: the same tests set out in who qualifies. GOV.UK says that if you don't know the home's EPC rating, you can find it out as you apply. Have your postcode, the home's rating if you know it, and a rough idea of household income or benefits to hand. Registering costs nothing and doesn't commit you to anything.

If you rent privately or let a home, read renters and landlords first: the routes for rented homes differ.

The timetable

Why "year three" matters

The council runs the scheme in yearly rounds. Year two runs from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027 and, the council says, is oversubscribed. Registering now puts you in line for year three, which starts on 1 April 2027. The council says your acknowledgement will confirm that your application will be considered then.

So the realistic picture for anyone registering in late 2026 is no work before spring 2027 at the earliest, and possibly later, depending on demand. GOV.UK's general description says councils usually make contact within 10 working days; in Liverpool, that first contact is the acknowledgement, not a survey date.

After you register

The engagement officer and your evidence

If your application progresses, the council says one of its engagement officers will contact you to complete the application. They may ask for proof documents: personal ID, financial information to verify household income, or property deeds. Having those ready shortens this stage. The government's guidance to councils doesn't let eligibility rest on a household's own word about its income or benefits; it has to be shown with documents and checked, which is why the officer asks for papers rather than a form you sign yourself.

Be careful about who you share documents with. The council's process runs through its own officers and its framework contractor. The Combined Authority's page makes a point worth applying everywhere: council staff and contractors on the programme carry photographic identification, and if you're unsure of someone's identity, don't let them in. See grant scams.

The survey

What the retrofit survey decides

If your application is successful, the council passes your details to its framework contractor, who arranges a retrofit survey. The survey establishes the home's current energy rating and the most appropriate improvements. That's the point at which solar panels are, or aren't, recommended: a home that needs insulation first may be offered that instead.

Sefton Council's page describes its equivalent survey as a detailed, non-intrusive assessment by a qualified retrofit assessor looking at the structure, insulation and heating. See questions for the survey.

Other boroughs

Applying outside the city

In Sefton, homeowners register through the same GOV.UK portal and the council's retrofit team picks it up; Sefton says its procured installer will arrange the survey. In Halton, Knowsley, St Helens and Wirral, the Combined Authority says homeowners can use the portal or its own form, while private renters and landlords use its form. See which council.

Afterwards

Once measures are fitted

If panels are installed, ask how they connect to your supply, who registers them with the network operator, and what paperwork you'll receive. An MCS certificate matters if you want to apply for Smart Export Guarantee payments for electricity you send to the grid. Ask the council's contractor whether the installation will be MCS certified.