Aims/priorities: The priorities of the Main and Small Grants schemes are to:
- Support energy consumers in vulnerable situations.
- Deliver benefits to the types of consumers that were negatively impacted by the specific issues that triggered the redress payment.
Vulnerability can impact consumers at different points in their lives and can manifest itself in several ways, such as facing difficulty in paying energy bills or being less able to make effective choices in the energy market. A wide range of factors can exacerbate vulnerability, ranging from living on a low income to having disabilities or illness and/or a reliance on electricity for heating.
Examples of the kind of activities that can be funded through the Energy Redress Scheme include:
- Engaging vulnerable customers with energy issues and referring them for support
- Delivering energy advice that does not duplicate existing advice services
- Installation of energy saving or renewable energy measures that cannot be funded elsewhere and/or are innovative or are being used in innovative ways
- In-home safety advice and measures related to energy systems
- Training and education on energy that is targeted at supporting vulnerable customers.
Grants can be used for capital or revenue funding and can provide up to 100% of the project cost. Projects lasting up to two years can be funded.
Who can apply? Registered charities in England, Scotland and Wales that are registered with the Energy Redress Scheme and have passed the due diligence process can apply to the open funding rounds. Other organisations can be involved in delivering the project, but the projects must be led by a charity who must submit the application and be responsible for the funding and project delivery.
Grant amount: There is a total of £3 million to fund new projects across the following funding streams:
- Small Project Fund grants of between £20,000 and £49,999 for projects that will support energy consumers in vulnerable situations.
- Main Project Fund grants of between £50,000 and £300,000 for projects that will support energy consumers in vulnerable situations.
- Innovation Fund grants of between £20,000 and £200,000 for projects that will develop innovative products or services to benefit energy consumers (Covered in a separate entry).
- Carbon Emissions Reduction Fund grants of between £20,000 and £200,000 for projects that encourage householders to reduce their carbon emissions (Covered in a separate entry).
Application process: The guidance notes and online application system (called the Charity Dashboard) can be found on the Energy Saving Trust website.
Organisations wishing to access the Scheme must complete an online information form so that Energy Saving Trust can check whether they are eligible to apply. Charities that meet the initial criteria will be notified and will be emailed a link to create an account, through which they can apply for all subsequent rounds.
Deadline: The deadline to apply is 5pm on 30 January 2023.
Contact information: Tel 020 7222 0101, Email energyredress@est.org.uk
Website address: energyredress.org.uk