Don’t delay, apply today!

HEET (Home Energy Efficiency Tees Valley), a partnership of Darlington, Hartlepool, Stockton-on-Tees and Redcar and Cleveland Borough Councils, has secured £6m through the Government’s Home Upgrade Grant (HUG) initiative.

It aims to help people whose homes are NOT heated by gas and which have an energy performance rating of D, E, F or G, through the installation of measures such as insulation, air source heat pumps and solar panels.

Councillor Mike Young, Leader of Hartlepool Borough Council, said: “I am delighted that we are now in a position to start taking grant applications and I look forward to the first works to make residents’ homes more energy-efficient being completed in the not too distant future.

“Our participation in the HEET consortium of local authorities reflects our determination as an authority to reduce our carbon footprint and tackle the causes of climate change, and I would encourage qualifying residents to take full advantage of what is on offer.”

All of the energy-efficiency measures are free to qualifying residents.

Some people qualify automatically for a grant with no financial checks due to their postcode, while others must have a household gross income of less than £31,000 or be in receipt of a qualifying means-tested benefit, including Universal Credit, Working and Child Tax Credits, Income Support, income-based Job Seeker’s Allowance, income-related Employment and Support Allowance.

Carers Allowance, Pension Credit Guarantee, Disability Living Allowance and Personal Independence Payments do not count towards the income threshold.

Residents can apply for a grant – and also check if they live in a qualifying postcode area - at www.hartlepool.gov.uk/HEET-apply

They can find an existing energy certificate or get a new one at www.gov.uk/find-energy-certificate