Business Secretary Alok Sharma has urged tradespeople across England to sign up to be able to offer services through the Green Homes Grants scheme, after over 1,000 businesses across the country have already applied so far.
The £2 billion Green Homes Grant Scheme will see the government fund up to two-thirds of the cost of home improvements up to £10,000 to make over 600,000 homes across the country more energy efficient, supporting over 100,000 jobs in green construction, cutting carbon emissions and helping people save money on their energy bills.
The requirements for tradespeople come after campaigners and MPs urged the government to ensure the quality of energy efficiency measures carried out under the scheme.
The Green Homes Grant scheme will cover green home improvements ranging from insulation of walls, floors and roofs, to the installation double or triple glazing when replacing single glazing, and low-carbon heating like heat pumps or solar thermal – measures that could help families save ‘up to £600 a year’ on their energy bills.
Mr Sharma commented: “The Green Homes Grant scheme will not only cut emissions and make a serious dent in people’s energy bills, but will create new work for many thousands of talented builders, plumbers and other tradespeople right across the UK.
“Today I’m urging businesses to sign up and get TrustMark accredited so they can crack on and offer their services to households across the country when the scheme opens.”
To take part and offer their services through the scheme, all tradespeople must register with TrustMark.
Where tradespeople are installing energy efficiency measures, they must also be certified to installation standards.
The Business Secretary also spoke today to organisations including Certass, the Microgeneration Certification Scheme, the National Inspection Council for Electrical Installation Contracting, Federation of Master Builders, and National Association of Professional Inspectors and Testers who will be encouraging their members to sign up to the TrustMark and get certified to the relevant standards so they can complete work paid in part through the Green Homes Grant.
To install low carbon heat measures, tradespeople must be TrustMark registered and certified through the Microgeneration Certification Scheme for the relevant heating technology.
Anyone wishing to do so can register with TrustMark via their website, with accreditation taking as few as five working days for those who already have membership of a recognised trade body such as the Federation of Master Builders, the Cavity Insulation Guarantee Agency and Building Engineering Services Association, or who are already certified under the Microgeneration Certification Scheme.
Simon Ayers, chief executive of TrustMark, added: “The £2 billion Green Homes Grant scheme is the best kickstart we could have hoped for, 24 million homes require improvements to enable us to meet the government’s 2050 net zero carbon target.
“As we undertake this journey, the construction and energy industries will play a vital role in the delivery of low carbon homes, providing healthier and more comfortable living conditions.
“TrustMark is working hard with their Scheme Providers to increase the numbers of TrustMark registered businesses so we can meet the demand of the Green Homes Grant scheme.
“Businesses can join and select a scheme provider that can support their application.”
