The British Gas Energy Trust published its response to the government consultation on continuing the Warm Home Discount scheme on 19 November 20251. The Trust, which is funded through the Industry Initiatives element of the scheme, said it "fully endorses the ongoing development of the WHD as a vital mechanism for combating fuel poverty" but argued that any extension should come with reform1.
The Trust's central financial recommendation is an increase in the rebate. It said the current £150 payment "is helpful but increasingly inadequate due to rising energy prices and inflation", and that it "would support an immediate increase to £300"1. It also backed indexing the rebate so its value stays aligned with household energy costs, and called for a funding commitment of five years for the new scheme, extending beyond 20261.
The response draws on the Trust's own delivery data. Its Supporting Communities at Risk Programme, which funds 166 project and advisor posts, supported 39,716 clients with over 160,000 issues; among those helped, 66% were receiving benefits, 58% lived in fuel poverty and 54% had disabilities1. Clients supported through the programme had more than £9 million of debt written off, with a further £32.5 million of debt managed1. Across its latest five-year strategic period the Trust said it directly assisted more than 350,000 clients, up from around 21,000 clients a year in 2020 to over 72,000 in 2024/251.
On the structure of the scheme, the Trust endorsed consolidating the Core Groups into a single eligibility framework supported by data matching, and backed extending access to households that pay for energy indirectly1. It recommended ring-fencing a minimum allocation, for example 10 to 15% of the total WHD budget, for Industry Initiatives, and retaining and expanding that element as the rebate is extended1. It also called for energy suppliers to be notified of their obligations in advance for the full duration of the scheme, so that funders and frontline organisations can plan longer-term funding with confidence1.
"The Trust would support an immediate increase to £300."
The Trust's evidence base includes an internal report from January 2025, which put indicative social value figures on its Industry Initiative funded work: £133,224,352 for SCARP, £118,808,446 for Energy Vouchers, £32,082,140 for the Individuals and Families Fund and £12,590,974 for a White Goods Fund pilot1. It also reported that 84% of grant recipients who received money advice remained out of debt six months later, compared with 53% of those who did not1.
Why it matters for households
The Warm Home Discount is a fixed rebate applied to electricity bills for eligible households, so any change to its value or eligibility rules feeds directly into what a home pays. The Trust's call for £300 would double the current £150 payment if adopted, though the response is a submission to a consultation and not a decision; no outcome has been reported1. Its proposal for a single Core Group and greater use of data matching concerns how households are identified for the discount, which currently depends on qualifying benefits and, in some cases, on supplier data. The Trust's figures on debt write-off and advice outcomes point to the wider support that sits alongside the rebate, including energy advice delivered through ECO4 and other insulation schemes, which address consumption rather than bill credit.
What happens next
The response was posted on 19 November 20251. No date for the government's decision on the consultation, or for the scheme's continuation beyond its current period, has been reported.
Sources1 cited
- Warm Home Discount Scheme Consultation | Future Support UK, britishgasenergytrust.org.uk