The Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund has been replaced with the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund, according to a House of Commons Library briefing on help with energy efficiency, heating and renewable energy in homes1. The briefing describes the new fund as government funding for local authorities and social housing landlords to improve the energy performance of social housing in England1.
The replacement sits within a wider set of schemes. The briefing lists the Warm Homes: Local Grant, which provides energy performance upgrades and low carbon heating via local authorities to low income households in private housing in England, including off-grid homes previously supported by the Home Upgrade Grant, which ended in March 20251. It also lists the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which provides upfront grants of up to £7,500, or £9,000 for heating oil and LPG users, towards renewable heating systems in domestic and small non-domestic properties in England and Wales1. The Warm Homes Plan is described as a collection of new and existing schemes, including the Warm Homes: Local Grant, the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund and the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, alongside new plans for consumer loans for home retrofits and investment in the retrofit supply chain1.
The briefing states the government aims through the Warm Homes Plan to reduce energy bills and fuel poverty and support employment in the retrofit sector, and that it also aims to enhance energy security and address the climate crisis1. The Energy Company Obligation, an energy supplier led scheme in England, Scotland and Wales focused on low-income households, has been extended to 31 December 20261. The Smart Export Guarantee pays households for each unit of electricity supplied to the grid but does not offer upfront payments, and installations must be located in Great Britain1.
Work funded under the previous fund is continuing. Kensa said on 15 May 2025 that it has broken ground on a project for Ashford Borough Council retrofitting 74 rural council homes with ground source heat pumps, part-funded by Wave 2 of the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, now replaced with the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund, alongside council investment2. The homes are in Appledore and Charing, and the heat pumps replace a mix of oil-fired, electric and gas heating systems2. Kensa said the installation is the first time the council has fitted ground source heat pumps in its residential properties and marks the beginning of a wider programme to retrofit 700 homes with energy-saving measures2.
"Embracing ground source heat pump technology is an exciting first for Ashford Borough Council and I'm confident it will transform tenants' lives by boosting energy security, saving money and providing a warmer and more comfortable home for them to enjoy."
Why it matters for households
For social housing tenants in England, the body that decides what efficiency work happens to a home is the landlord, and the funding route behind that work has changed name and structure. The briefing states the new fund is aimed at local authorities and social housing landlords rather than individual households, so a tenant's route to upgrades runs through the landlord1. Private households on low incomes in England have a separate route through the Warm Homes: Local Grant, delivered via local authorities, which the briefing says covers off-grid homes previously supported by the Home Upgrade Grant1. Households that own their homes and want renewable heating have the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, with upfront grants of up to £7,500, or £9,000 for heating oil and LPG users1. Households generating their own renewable electricity are paid per unit exported under the Smart Export Guarantee, with no upfront payment1. The Ashford project shows the practical shape of this: homes moving off oil, electric storage heaters and gas onto ground source heat pumps, with residents quoted on running costs and comfort2.
What happens next
The briefing gives no start date for the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund beyond confirming it replaces the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund1. The Energy Company Obligation has been extended to 31 December 20261. The Home Upgrade Grant ended in March 20251. Kensa said the Ashford programme covers 74 homes now, with a wider programme to retrofit 700 homes with energy-saving measures, and one resident said their house is due to be done in June2.
Sources2 cited
- Help with energy efficiency, heating and renewable energy in homes - House of Commons Library, commonslibrary.parliament.uk
- Ashford Borough Council Ground Source Heat Pumps, kensa.co.uk