The government has published its response to the Public Accounts Committee report on the Green Homes Grant, acknowledging the scheme's shortfalls and setting out plans to improve the design and delivery of future schemes1. The National Insulation Association, which reported the response, said the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy had recognised the need for greater liaison with industry and consumers in future programme design1.
The PAC report, published in December 2021, found the scheme had "underperformed badly", upgrading only about 47,500 homes out of the 600,000 originally envisaged and delivering a small fraction of the expected jobs1. In its response, BEIS accepts the implementation time was unrealistic and that the scheme was overly complex, which it attributes to being forced to roll it out so quickly, with no rollover flexibility1.
"BEIS accepts the implementation time was unrealistic"
The department has secured Treasury agreement to roll committed spend for the Home Upgrade Grant into future tax years, which the NIA says allows demand peaks and troughs to be smoothed without unspent in-year cash being returned at the end of the financial year1. BEIS has also committed to a more rigorous assessment procedure for appointing contractors to run future schemes, and to an independent evaluation published in August 2023 and shared with all relevant officials1. It says more than 100 officials from the Treasury, Number 10 and elsewhere have already taken part in a lessons learnt project, and a new programme has been set up to increase the department's capacity to deliver major projects1. One of its key performance indicators to Number 10 is the improvement in the number of EPC Cs, on which it reports annually1.
| Area | BEIS position in the response |
|---|---|
| Implementation timetable | Accepted as unrealistic1 |
| Scheme complexity | Accepted; blamed on rapid rollout with no rollover flexibility1 |
| Home Upgrade Grant spend | Treasury agreement to roll committed spend into future tax years1 |
| Contractor appointment | More rigorous assessment procedure for future schemes1 |
| Evaluation | Independent evaluation published August 20231 |
Why it matters for households
The Green Homes Grant was a voucher scheme for insulation and low carbon heating, and its closure left many households without the route to insulation and glazing improvements it had promised. The response confirms the gap between what was announced and what was delivered: about 47,500 homes upgraded against 600,000 envisaged1. For a household, the practical effect is that the scheme is closed and the replacement landscape is different, with support now running through other programmes. The rollover flexibility secured for the Home Upgrade Grant matters because it removes one of the pressures that the department says made the original scheme complex and rushed1. The commitment to an independent evaluation, and the annual reporting on EPC C improvements, are the mechanisms by which any lessons would be visible. The NIA's account does not report any new voucher scheme, any reopening of applications, or any change to eligibility for households1.
What happens next
The independent evaluation is due to be published in August 2023 and shared with all relevant officials1. The Home Upgrade Grant spend rollover into future tax years has been agreed with the Treasury1. No further dated steps are reported1.