The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) consulted in February 2025 on proposals to expand the Warm Home Discount scheme, which provides a one-off £150 discount off household electricity bills1. A Government Response published on 19 June 2025 confirmed that the expansion would be implemented for winter 2025/261. The Warm Home Discount (Amendment) Regulations 2025, laid before the House of Lords on 19 June 2025, were considered in Grand Committee on 3 September 20252.
The central change removes the high cost to heat threshold. Up to 2024/25, Core Group 2 in England and Wales supported only households receiving a qualifying means-tested benefit who also lived in a home that was hard to heat; from 2025/26, any household receiving a qualifying means-tested benefit is eligible1. The minister told the Grand Committee that removing the threshold would make all energy bill payers receiving a qualifying means-tested benefit eligible, bringing in around 2.7 million additional households and pushing the total for winter 2025/26 to around 6 million, or one in five UK households2. A peer put the total at 6.1 million2.
"Removing the high cost to heat threshold will make all energy bill payers who receive a qualifying means-tested benefit eligible for the warm home discount."
Delivery figures for 2025/26 show 5.52 million households in Great Britain received Core Group rebates of £150, equivalent to 18.6% of households, with total spend on Core Group rebates of £827.6 million1. That is around 2.29 million more households than in 2024/25, an increase of about £344.2 million of support1. Core Group 2 in England and Wales covered 4.53 million households, against 2.27 million the previous year1. The figures exclude the Scotland Broader Group and industry initiatives, for which household-level data are not available; Ofgem will publish the total number of rebates for the Scotland Broader Group and the cost of industry initiatives for 2025/26 in 20271.
| Group | Households, 2025/26 | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Core Group 1 (Great Britain) | 983 thousand | Pensioners on low income receiving Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit1 |
| Core Group 2 (England and Wales) | 4.53 million | Up from 2.27 million in 2024/251 |
| Scotland Broader Group | Not available | Around 186 thousand households in 2024/251 |
The cost falls on bill payers through a levy. The minister said the scheme moves from roughly £600 million to approximately £1 billion, and that the cost to bill payers rises from £15 to around £37 each2. A peer argued that the net benefit for an existing recipient falls from £128 (£150 minus a £22 levy) to £113 once the levy reaches £372. DESNZ estimates that 2.4 million households, some 28%, might not be data matched, against around 96% of discounts matched last year2. The minister also said the government had decided not to proceed with the expansion of the park homes scheme at the current time2.
Why it matters for households
The rebate is automatic for most recipients: 5.3 million households, 96%, received it through data matching, with a further 224 thousand receiving it after contacting the WHD helpline1. Eligibility now turns on receiving a qualifying means-tested benefit rather than on the property's heat loss characteristics, so households in smaller or better-insulated homes that were previously excluded can qualify. The eligibility rules are set out in the 2025/26 eligibility statement1. Because the scheme is funded by a levy on electricity bills, the expansion raises the amount added to every biller's charges, which affects households that do not receive the rebate. The discount is separate from the Winter Fuel Payment, which is funded from taxation rather than bill levies2; the differences are set out in Warm Home Discount vs Winter Fuel Payment. The scheme is administered by energy suppliers and regulated by Ofgem1.
What happens next
The current regulations expire on 31 March 2026, and the instrument extends the period in which rebate notices can be issued to suppliers so that as many as possible are issued before that date2. Ofgem will publish the total number of Scotland Broader Group rebates and the cost of industry initiatives for 2025/26 in 20271. A January 2026 impact assessment on continuing the scheme sets out that a greater number of households are expected to receive the discount under the Scottish Broader Group in future years1.
Sources2 cited
- Warm Home Discount statistics, 2025 to 2026 - GOV.UK, gov.uk
- Warm Home Discount (Amendment) Regulations 2025 - Hansard - UK ParliamentRegulations2025), hansard.parliament.uk