Glossary
Solar grant words, explained
Grant schemes come with their own vocabulary: pathways, deciles, retrofit coordinators, cost caps. Here are the terms you're most likely to meet in Liverpool, in plain English, each linked to the page where it matters.
Where you stand
The key terms are Warm Homes: Local Grant (the council scheme), the EPC D to G test, the three pathways (postcode, benefits, income), the after-housing-costs test, the retrofit survey, MCS and the Smart Export Guarantee.
- After housing costs (AHC)
- Household income after tax and after rent or mortgage payments, compared with a threshold for the household’s size. Read more.
- Article 4 direction
- A council order removing some permitted development rights in an area, so changes need planning permission. Read more.
- Boiler Upgrade Scheme
- A grant towards heat pumps and biomass boilers; it doesn’t fund solar. Read more.
- Combined Authority
- The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, which runs Warm Homes: Local Grant for Halton, Knowsley, St Helens and Wirral. Read more.
- Conservation area
- An area of special architectural or historic interest; Liverpool has 36. Read more.
- Cost cap
- The average amount a council can spend per home under Warm Homes: Local Grant, set by government.
- ECO4
- The fourth Energy Company Obligation, extended to 31 December 2026 only to finish existing work. Read more.
- EPC
- Energy performance certificate, rating a home from A to G; the grant needs D to G. Read more.
- Eligible postcode
- A postcode on the government’s list of the most income-deprived areas; pathway 1 of the grant. Read more.
- Engagement officer
- The council officer who completes an application with you and checks evidence. Read more.
- Framework contractor
- The firm a council appoints to survey homes and install measures. Read more.
- kWp
- Kilowatt-peak, the rated size of a set of solar panels. Read more.
- MCS
- The Microgeneration Certification Scheme, which certifies installers and installations. Read more.
- Means-tested benefit
- A benefit based on financial need, such as Universal Credit; pathway 2 of the grant. Read more.
- Pathway
- One of three household tests for Warm Homes: Local Grant: postcode, benefits or income. Read more.
- Permitted development
- Work that doesn’t need a planning application, if its conditions are met. Read more.
- PV battery
- A battery that stores electricity from solar panels; funded under the grant only alongside panels. Read more.
- Referral portal
- The GOV.UK service where you register interest in Warm Homes: Local Grant. Read more.
- Retrofit survey
- An assessment of the whole home that decides which measures suit it. Read more.
- Smart Export Guarantee
- Payments from a supplier for electricity you send to the grid. Read more.
- Social Housing Fund
- The Warm Homes fund for council and housing association homes, bid for by landlords. Read more.
- Warm Homes loan
- A loan from a participating lender for improvements including solar; not a grant. Read more.
- Warm Homes: Local Grant
- The council-run scheme that can fund solar and other improvements for eligible households in England. Read more.
Sources for this page
- Liverpool City Council › Apply for a Warm Homes Local Grant, read 3 November 2026
- GOV.UK › Apply for the Warm Homes: Local Grant to improve a home, read 3 November 2026
- DESNZ › Warm Homes: Local Grant policy guidance for local authorities, July 2026 (PDF), read 4 November 2026
- Liverpool City Council › Conservation areas, read 3 November 2026
A question about solar funding in Liverpool?
Tell us what you're trying to find out. Your message reaches SEO-DONS LTD, which publishes this guide, and we answer by email. We don't run any grant scheme, decide eligibility or install panels, but we can point you to the scheme and the council that does.
What happens next
- Your message reaches SEO-DONS LTD, publisher of this guide.
- We answer by email, pointing to the scheme or council that applies.
- Any application is made to the council or scheme itself.