The scheme was announced in the Summer Budget in July as part of a £3bn green investment package the government says will help support about 140,000 green jobs and upgrade buildings and reduce emissions.

Homeowners in England, including landlords, can get up to £5,000 to pay part of the cost of energy saving measures such as insulation.

The vouchers can fund up to two thirds of the work done. For example, a household getting £6,000 worth of energy improvement work done could get a voucher for £4,000.

Low income households can get 100% of the costs of work covered up to £10,000.

The government says these green improvements could save some households hundreds of pounds a year on their energy bills while creating thousands of jobs for tradespeople.

How to apply for a voucher

• Go to the government’s Green Homes Grant website
• Check if you’re eligible for a voucher
• Check what improvements may be suitable for your home
• Choose which improvements you would like and see an estimate of how much they may cost
• Find registered installers to get quotes from to carry out the work
• Apply for your voucher

You must redeem the voucher and ensure improvements are completed by 31 March 2021.

You can’t use the voucher to help pay for works that were carried out prior to the voucher being issued.

What improvements can I get done?

Vouchers must be used to install at least one “primary” home insulation or low carbon heating measure.

Insulation measures that count as primary measures are:

• solid wall
• under floor
• cavity wall
• loft
• flat or pitched roof
• room in roof
• insulating a park home

Low carbon heat measures that can be primary measures are:

• air source, ground source or hybrid heat pump
• solar thermal
• biomass boilers

If you choose to install at least one of the primary measures, you can use your voucher to help cover the cost of secondary measures.

Secondary measures include:

• draught proofing
• double/triple glazing (where replacing single glazed windows)
• secondary glazing (in addition to single glazing)
• external energy efficient doors (replacing single glazed or solid doors installed before 2002)
• heating controls
• hot water tank thermostats and insulation

The grant for the secondary measure is capped at the value of the grant provided for the primary measures.

For example, if you receive a £400 voucher for a primary measure such as cavity wall insulation, you will be able to receive a maximum of £400 for a secondary measure such as an energy efficient replacement door.

How can tradespeople register for the scheme?

Tradespeople and businesses that are appropriately certified to install energy efficiency and/or low carbon heating improvements in homes need to register with TrustMark to carry out work under the scheme.

You will be added to a directory of TrustMark registered installers, and homeowners can then contact you to obtain a quote.

Tradespeople and businesses that install low carbon heating improvements in homes will also need to be MCS certified.

Once you are registered with TrustMark, you need to apply to become a Green Homes Grant installer.