The default source of electricity has traditionally been from the national grid, generated from a range of fossil fuels, including coal, natural gas and oil. However, these fuels are not without environmental downsides, and this is why governments across the world have been trying to push for more renewable, green sources of energy that will also help its citizens.
Solar electricity is a clean and renewable source of energy. There are a wealth of benefits that solar possesses, not only in reducing carbon emissions, but also helping households save money on energy bills.
As such, the government has been actively trying to promote solar panels as a better alternative. They have therefore introduced several grants and incentives to get solar PV systems into more UK households, helping with the zero carbon emissions by 2050 target.
What’s the Best Government Grants for Solar Panels?
Solar panels and the installation work required often involve significant upfront costs and this can be off-putting, or at least put it out of the financial reach of many low income households. As a result, over the years, various UK government grants, schemes and incentives have been introduced to make solar panels more accessible to households, businesses and communities nationwide.
Some of these schemes include ECO4, plus incentives such as the Feed-in-Tariff scheme, Smart Export Guarantee, and 0% VAT payable on solar installations. The Warm Homes Plan, in the form of a Warm Homes: Local Grant, will be the primary source of grant funding for domestic solar installations from 2027 onwards, once the ECO4 scheme has come to a close.
The ECO4 Scheme
ECO4 is a government scheme that commenced in April 2022, following on from the previous iterations of the Energy Company Obligations scheme, which has been running since 2013. The ECO scheme — which saw the main energy suppliers obligated to provide funding for grants — is due to close at the end of December 2026, but there is still an opportunity to secure grant funding
ECO4 provides free funding through the Energy Company Obligation for a range of energy efficiency home improvements designed to reduce carbon emissions and lower energy bills, mainly by targeting low-income families and vulnerable households that will benefit from the reduced costs of energy. These home improvements consist of:
- Solar Energy Grants
- Home Insulation Grants
- Heat Pump Grants
Over 4.45 million energy efficiency measures have been installed for households during the course of the ECO scheme (up to end of March 2026), with over 2.5 million homes benefitting from the free grants to save money and improve a home’s energy efficiency.
To get Solar Panels through ECO4 you have to see if you are eligible. Our application form takes just minutes to fill in, and you’ll get a notification of your eligibility, as well as access to some of the UK’s certified contractors.
It is still entirely possible to get your hands on Solar Panels for free through ECO4, though you will have to enquire before the scheme comes to a close at the end of 2026.
Am I Eligible for ECO4?
Eligibility criteria for ECO4 is relatively straightforward. They consist of both the benefit/income level you have or your EPC Rating.
Benefits and/or Income that qualifies for ECO4
Since the government is targeting low-income households, they made those that receive some financial support benefits automatically viable, and some schemes require claimants to be on certain benefits or other qualifying benefits. The following benefits are those that are eligible for ECO4’s schemes:
- Income-based Jobseekers Allowance
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- Income Support (IS)
- Pension Credit Guarantee Credit
- Working Tax Credit (WTC)
- Child Tax Credits (CTC)
- Universal Credit (UC)
- Housing Benefit (new qualifying benefit for ECO4)
- Pension Credit Savings Credit (new qualifying benefit for ECO4)
Alternatively, if your household income is lower than £31,000 a year, you will likely qualify, although income thresholds vary by scheme and area. Whilst it is quite likely, it may be more or less depending on your local authority, in which the final decision lies. Some grants also require the household to have lived in the property for at least 12 months.
EPC Rating required to qualify for ECO4
EPC refers to an Energy Performance Certificate, which is essentially the certified document stating the conditions of your energy production and efficiency
‘A’ signifies a high rating of efficiency, whereas ‘G’ signifies the lowest. In order to qualify for the ECO4 scheme, your home must be in need of energy efficient home improvements, and as such, you would need an EPC rating of D to G.
Warm Homes Plan
A Warm Homes Plan announced by the Labour Government has promised a ‘Rooftop Revolution’ in terms of helping more households access solar technologies. Grants of up to £15,000 are available to eligible households in England to cover the cost of solar panels and solar battery installations.
Low-income households (typically with an income under £36k) who live in energy inefficient homes rated D to G (either owned or rented properties) are likely to qualify for funding.
Those who do not meet the eligibility criteria in terms of income may qualify if they are considered particularly vulnerable or live in certain postcode areas, but this will be at the discretion of the local authorities, as was the case under previous Flex rules for ECO4.
The Warm Homes Plan actually brings together several elements, including the Warm Homes: Local Grant (through which solar grants can be secured), The Boiler Upgrade Scheme, Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund, plus a consolidation of various existing programmes.
Going forwards, the Warm Homes Plan — which is funded directly from government grants from the Treasury — will become the primary way to access solar funding, as ECO4 will soon cease.
What if you can’t get a solar grant? Is there any other help available?
Solar grants are not automatically available to all, and you might find yourself in a position where you are wondering if there is any other assistance available. The Warm Homes Fund, offering low interest loans, and a 0% VAT incentive on solar installations are a couple of ways that might make solar more affordable to households.
Warm Homes Fund
Those who are not eligible for a free solar grant may be able to access low interest or an interest free loan to help them with these upfront costs of installing solar panels. This £5 billion Government-backed loan scheme to support the delivery of home upgrades is expected to launch in 2027.
0% VAT On Solar Installations
To encourage greater take up of solar technology the government introduced 0% VAT for renewable technologies like solar. Until the end of March 2027, products such as solar panels will be zero rated meaning no VAT will be payable. After this period, the rate of VAT will revert back to the rate of 5%.
Previous Schemes Available
Feed-In-Tariff
This was a government scheme available from 2010-2019 and was designed to promote renewable energy sources, including solar panels and batteries. Those who generated their own energy and stored them in batteries were able to sell that energy back to the national grid, as well as being paid for the electricity that they generated.
That being said, whilst this is now unavailable, those who already signed up during the open period are still able to continue benefiting from the scheme.
Green Homes Grant (GHG)
The Green Homes Grant was a governmental scheme that gave out vouchers to homeowners to cover some of the costs of installing energy efficiency improvements, such as solar panels. The scheme began in September 2020 and finally ended in March 2022.
The Technological Advancements of Solar Technology
Solar Panels are often cited as having certain drawbacks, and these drawbacks are often cited as the reason why many opt not to pursue them. However, solar technology has come a very long way, especially in recent years, due to continuous research and development.
Solar Panels Efficiency
Solar Panels have been cited as having a poor ability to draw in power, especially during the daytime when not a lot of solar light is hitting the PV system. However, research has enabled solar panels to increase efficiency and power with developments such as muti-junction solar cells. This uses several layers of high-quality materials sectioned apart, capturing a broader range of solar spectrums.
Lowered Cost
Whilst Solar Panels still are a considerable expense, their massive cost has been reduced to reachable means for a decent percentage of the population. This is due to the development of thinner films within the Solar Panels. The thin film requires fewer materials, enabling them to be constructed through roll-to-roll printing and vapour deposition, which are highly cost-effective.
Bifacial Solar Panels
These solar panels are able to generate solar energy from the sun on both sides of their panels. This means that the sun’s energy that hits and is reflected off of areas behind the solar panel can now be captured instead of being wasted. This means that the amount of energy that solar panels can generate increases significantly.
Building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV)
BIPV essentially is a technology that allows Solar Panels to be installed and fitted onto unconventional surfaces. These surfaces can be areas such as windows, facades or roofing tiles. These measures allow installers to save a great deal of space whilst reducing the costs of installation.
Energy Storage Solutions
Through the development of energy storage alongside solar panels through batteries, you can essentially use the solar energy you collect throughout the day during times when no sunlight at all is present. Overall, this makes solar energy systems far more reliable and flexible. On top of that, you can take advantage of batteries so you can sell them back to the national grid.
Smart Solar Systems and Inverters
Smart Solar Systems are technologies that enable solar systems to be integrated into online systems. This means that through devices, such as Androids and computers, you can monitor your energy production. It can also be used to monitor in real-time the performance and health of your systems, allowing you to detect when your Solar System isn’t performing to standard.
Flexible and lightweight solar panels
Thanks to newer manufacturing processes, flexible and lightweight solar panels have been created with the purpose of being fitted onto various different types of building structures. This makes solar panels more accessible to a wide array of people and situations.
Other solar panel advantages that you should consider
Solar panels bring obvious bill savings straight away and can lower your home’s carbon footprint, but there are other advantages of producing your own solar electricity.
Smart Export Guarantee (SEG)
Smart Export Guarantee was a scheme introduced in January 2020. It was a replacement for FoT Export Tariff, which ended in 2019. SEG mandates that energy suppliers that have more than 150k customers are obligated to offer tariffs for small-scale, low-carbon generators for excess electricity exported to the grid.
This means if you have a battery alongside your solar panels, then you can benefit by selling your generated green energy back to the national grid.
Energy Independence
Being independent from the national grid grants you a great many benefits. Aside from minimising your greenhouse gas production, you also protect yourself from regional outages. These outages are most common during severe weather conditions, such as storms.
Solar Panels Eventually Pay for Themselves Through Reduced Energy Bills
Although it will take some time for the investment in solar to pay you back (if you’ve had to finance it yourself), but with the use of solar batteries, the Smart Export Guarantee, and the costs saving by not having to draw electricity from the national grid, solar panels will eventually pay for themselves. If you manage to have your solar installation covered by a free grant then you will be making savings from the outset, and potentially even making additional income from any excess electricity produced.
