Liverpool City Council
Warm Homes: Local Grant in Liverpool, and where solar fits
Warm Homes: Local Grant is the nearest thing Liverpool has to a solar grant. It's run by Liverpool City Council for lower-income households in less efficient homes, and solar panels are one of many improvements it may fund. Here's what the council's own page says, in order.
Where you stand
If your home is in the Liverpool City Council area, privately owned or rented, rated EPC D to G, and you meet one of three income or area tests, you can register interest through the GOV.UK portal. Year two is full; registration now is for year three, from 1 April 2027.
Who decides: Liverpool City Council, after checks, a retrofit survey and within its budget.
The money
£5.8 million, three years, around 450 properties
Liverpool City Council says the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero awarded it £5.8 million to spend on improving the energy efficiency of around 450 properties over a three-year period. The council links the programme to its plan to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2035 and expects it to lower emissions and reduce fuel poverty.
Put those two figures side by side and the scale is clear. Liverpool had 207,491 households at the 2021 Census. Around 450 properties over three years is a small fraction of the homes that might meet the tests, which is why the council describes funding as limited and the scheme as oversubscribed. The scheme isn't a right; it's a pot shared out among eligible households who register.
The timetable
Year two is full; year three opens in April 2027
The council's page is plain about timing. Year two runs from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027 and is oversubscribed. You can still register interest for year three, which starts on 1 April 2027. If you register now, the council says you'll receive a letter or email acknowledging your interest and confirming that your application will be considered in year three.
That matters if you're comparing a grant with paying yourself. Waiting for a grant that might come in 2027 or later makes sense for a household that couldn't otherwise afford panels. For a household that could, it's worth knowing that solar installation is zero-rated for VAT only until 31 March 2027. See paying yourself.
What it can pay for
The measures on Liverpool's list
The council lists the energy efficiency measures it may offer, subject to a full survey and the funds being available. We've grouped them; the wording of each comes from the council's page.
| Group | Measures |
|---|---|
| Insulation | Flat roof, loft, solid, underfloor, external or internal wall, and cavity wall insulation |
| Hot water | Hot water thermostat, and cylinder or tank insulation |
| Generating | Solar PV, solar thermal, PV batteries |
| Heating | Hybrid heat pumps, ground source heat pumps and shared ground loops, high retention storage heaters, biomass boilers |
| Controls and fabric | Digital smart controls, windows, doors |
Solar isn't chosen by the household. A retrofit assessment looks at the whole home and recommends the measures that suit it. In a poorly insulated house, insulation may come first. Solar PV is one option among many, not a menu choice.
Who can apply
The tests, as Liverpool sets them out
The council says you can apply if you own or live in a property within the Liverpool boundary that has an EPC rating of D to G. GOV.UK adds that the home must be privately owned, by you or your landlord. Then the household must meet at least one of three pathways:
- Pathway 1: the home is in a postcode within income deciles 1 or 2 of the Indices of Multiple Deprivation. The council publishes the eligible postcodes as a spreadsheet.
- Pathway 2: the household receives a specific means-tested benefit, or qualifies under route 2 of the ECO4 Flex criteria.
- Pathway 3: the household's gross annual income is below £36,000, or meets the after-housing-costs threshold for its size.
Being in an eligible postcode doesn't settle it, the council warns: funding is subject to assessment of the home, and it may not be able to help every household that qualifies. More in who qualifies.
How to apply
Registering, and what follows
Register through the GOV.UK referral portal. The council says it can't accept applications or expressions of interest made directly to its Healthy Homes team by email or phone.
Acknowledgement. A letter or email confirms your interest and, for now, that it will be considered in year three.
An engagement officer gets in touch if your application progresses, and may ask for ID, financial information to verify income, or property deeds.
Retrofit survey. If you're accepted, your details go to the council's framework contractor, who surveys the home, establishes its energy rating and the most suitable improvements.
Work, or the waiting list. If the survey shows the work fits the budget and funding is available, the work goes ahead; otherwise you may be placed on a waiting list.
GOV.UK says councils usually contact applicants within 10 working days, but with year two oversubscribed, Liverpool's acknowledgement points to year three. See applying and waiting lists.
Cost to you
What a qualifying household pays
The council says it won't ask for a financial contribution from households that qualify. GOV.UK's description of the scheme is similar for homeowners, and adds that if you have a landlord, the landlord may need to pay for some improvements. Private rented homes are covered in renters and landlords.
Be wary of anyone who asks you for money to "secure" a place on the scheme, to fast-track an application, or to pay for a survey. Those aren't steps on the council's page. See grant scams.
Outside the city
If your council isn't Liverpool
The Combined Authority's page explains that Liverpool and Sefton councils deliver their own parts of the programme, while it runs the scheme for Halton, Knowsley, St Helens and Wirral. Liverpool postcodes beginning L cover parts of several boroughs, so check your council on GOV.UK before registering. See L postcodes and councils.
What it's for
Bills, warmth and the energy rating
The scheme's stated aims are lower carbon emissions and less fuel poverty. In practice that means warmer homes that cost less to heat and a better energy rating. We don't put a figure on what any household will save; it depends on the home, the measures and energy prices. The retrofit assessment should explain what each recommended measure is expected to do for your home.
Questions about Liverpool's scheme
Does the Liverpool scheme install solar panels?
Solar PV and PV batteries are on Liverpool City Council’s list of measures it may offer. Whether a particular home gets them depends on the retrofit assessment, the survey and the funds available.
How much money does Liverpool have?
The council says DESNZ awarded it £5.8 million to improve the energy efficiency of around 450 properties over three years.
Can I still apply?
The council says year two, from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027, is oversubscribed. You can register interest now for year three, which starts on 1 April 2027.
How do I register?
Through the GOV.UK referral portal for Warm Homes: Local Grant. The council says it can’t accept applications or expressions of interest sent directly to its Healthy Homes team by email or phone.
Will I have to pay anything?
The council says it won’t ask for a financial contribution from households that qualify.
Sources for this page
- Liverpool City Council › Apply for a Warm Homes Local Grant, read 3 November 2026
- Liverpool City Council › Fuel bills and energy efficiency, read 3 November 2026
- GOV.UK › Apply for the Warm Homes: Local Grant to improve a home, read 3 November 2026
- Liverpool City Region Combined Authority › Warm Homes Local Grant, read 3 November 2026
- GOV.UK › Find an energy certificate, read 3 November 2026
- Nomis › Census 2021 TS054, tenure, 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.