Statement of Intent

ECO: Help to Heat Flexible Eligibility Statement of Intent.

Version 1.Publication: 3rd October 2017.

Publication of this statement can be found at

1. Introduction

1.1 Fuel poverty can cause low income and vulnerable households to live in cold, unhealthy homes and push them further into debt. Tamworth Borough Council welcomes the new Local Authority Flexible Eligibility powers for Energy Company Obligation (ECO) as a means to help address this issue. These powers will allow the Council to provide affordable warmth assistance to fuel poor households, that are not eligible under the existing criteria, and to low income households that are vulnerable to the effects of cold. Further details about Flexible Eligibility are set out in the Government’s ‘Energy Company Obligation (ECO): Help to Heat’ consultation response document.

1.2 Tamworth Borough Council recently commissioned BRE and MEA to undertake a series of modelling exercises on our housing stock. In Tamworth9.3% of households in the Borough live in fuel poverty. This equates to 2970 homes[1]: a figure that will only increase as fuel prices rise, which they are predicted to do over the coming years. Thisreport highlighted that the highest proportionate rate of fuel poverty was found in the private rented sector. Such information will facilitate the decision making process for targeting resources to improve the condition of housing and to prevent ill health resulting from poor housing conditions.

1.3 The Joint Strategic Needs Assessment identifies cold homes as a particular problem for older persons and vulnerable persons. Excess Winter Death rates are a key indicator of the impact of cold weather on health. In Britain there are approximately 20% more deaths in winter than summer; but in other, much colder, countries the excess is smaller indicating that the impact could be reduced. In Tamworth, there were 42 excess winter deaths between August 2014 and July 2015[2], a value of 22.1 on the excess winter deaths index (all persons). This is slightly lower than the regional and national figures (26.3 and 27.7 respectively) however due to small numbers, there is no statistical difference.

1.4 ECO Flexible Eligibility will contribute towards the aims of the Council‘s Corporate Strategy and Health and Wellbeing Strategy. This includes:

  • Increasing the numbers of energy efficient, safe, healthy and affordable homes to live in.
  • Enabling financial assistance to vulnerable and low income owner occupiers.
  • Reducing carbon emissions from the domestic sector.
  • Strengthening the local economy.

1.5 In 2009 Tamworth Borough Council set up ‘Home Energy Advice Tamworth’ (HEAT) to help deliver energy saving advice and efficiency measures to local residents. This is part of an overarching vision to reduce carbon emissions, alleviate fuel poverty and improve the condition of the housing stock as well as improving the health and wellbeing of residents.

1.6 Since its launch the HEAT scheme has advised over 3000households and installed energy saving measures in over 1000 homes.

1.7 The Council will use the HEAT Scheme to market ECO grants to residents and provide advice on energy saving options. The eligibility of each resident contacting the service will be assessed against the local Flexible Eligibility criteria. All ECO funded measures will be delivered by the Home Energy Advice Tamworth (HEAT) Delivery Partners and funded by their ECO suppliers.

Tamworth Borough Council’s ambitions for Flexible Eligibility (FE) are:

  • To maximise the uptake of cavity wall and loft insulation measures.
  • To maximise the uptake of measures for off-gas properties especially electrically heated, oil and LPG fuelled properties.
  • To develop schemes that support tower block refurbishments.
  • To develop schemes to support off-gas park home residents.
  • To develop other schemes as appropriate.
  • Provide a route for the use of Local Authority capital funding contributions where, from time to time, these might be eligible.

2. Eligible households

2.1ECO Flexible Eligibility is available to private sector households, including owner occupiers and private tenants, in line with the Government’s guidance (ECO: Help to Heat Flexible Eligibility p1).

2.2 All potentially eligible households will need to apply through Home Energy Advice Tamworth (HEAT) in order to be assessed (Freephone 0800 0432815). The HEAT advisors will check eligibility in their initial conversation with the resident; they will also check that the resident is happy for their data to be shared with Scheme partners.

2.3The delivery partner, presently Marches Energy Agency (MEA) and Beat the Cold (BtC), will forward details of those who meet the Council’s Flexible Eligibility criteria to the Council on an agreed regular basis to be signed off. The Declaration will then be passed back to the delivery partner to forward the Declarations on the Council’s behalf to selected installers.Inclusion in the Declaration does not guarantee funding (see paragraph 2.10)

2.4Defining people living on a low income and vulnerable to the effects of living in a cold home.

i)The latest Annual Fuel Poverty Statistics Report, 2016 from DECC states that the median (average) income after housing costs (AHC) i.e. once rent or mortgage are taken out, in 2014 was £20,729 for the overall population. Therefore the Council will identify householdsin fuel poverty as those that have an income of £20,000 or less AND if household savings of any kind are £8000 or less (single person household) or £12000 or less (multiple person household) which is in line with other Tamworth ‘approved’ schemes such as Warm Zones Healthy Homes Fund[3].

ii) The Council defines that a household will be eligible as having high energy costs if the household scores more than 5 points using the high energy costs table.

2.5The table below will be used to establish whether the household has high energy costs or not.

Question / Response / Score
How many bedrooms are there in the home? / 1 / 0
2 / 10
3 / 17
4 / 27
5 or more / 36
Are energy payments made by Direct Debit? / Yes / -7
No / 0
No response / -7
What type of house is it? / Semi detached / -4
Detached / 6
Mid terrace / -10
End terrace / -4
Converted flat / -9
Purpose built flat, high rise / -20
Purpose built flat, low rise / -34
Bungalow / 0
No response / -4
Was the home built before 1964? / Yes / 17
No / 0
No response / 17
What is the main heating fuel? / Gas / -14
Electricity / 0
Oil / 12
Other / -10
No response / -14
Does at least one member of the household spend most of the day in the home? / Yes / 1
No / 0
No response / 0

i) Exceptional cases, not meeting the requirements above, will be considered on a case by case basis.

2.6The NICE guideline[4]‘Excess winter deaths and illness and the health risksassociated with cold homes’ states that: a wide range of people are vulnerable to the cold. This is either because of a medical condition, such as heart disease; a disability that, for instance, stops people moving around to keep warm, or makes them more likely to develop chest infections; or personal circumstances, such as being unable to afford to keep warm enough.

i) Households* will qualify under the Flexible Eligibility criteria where they have one occupant or more who is vulnerable to the cold outlined in the NICE guideline as shown below:

  • People with cardiovascular conditions
  • People with respiratory conditions (in particular, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and childhood asthma)
  • People with mental health conditions
  • People with disabilities
  • Older people (65 and older)
  • Households with young children (from new-born to school age)
  • Pregnant women
  • People on a low income

ii) Exceptional cases, not meeting the requirements above, will be considered on a case by case basis.

*Eligibility does not guarantee funding (see paragraph 2.10)

2.7 Non-fuel poor households eligible for solid wall insulation in-fill must be:

  • in the same terrace as
  • in an immediately adjacent building to, or
  • are in the same building as a household that does meet the criteria

2.8 For each project, infill eligibility must meet the minimum percentages set out below:

Property Type / LA declaration requirements / In-fill available
Project consisting of a pair of
semi-detached houses or
bungalows, or a building
containing no more than two
domestic premises / At least one of the two properties must be declared
by the Council as fuel poor i.e. 50% of the properties must be fuel poor / The other property to which it is directly adjoined is eligible for solid wall insulation.
Project consisting of any
premises that are contained in the same building (e.g. flats), immediately adjacent
buildings (e.g. neighbouring
detached properties) or in the same terrace / At least two in three
properties on the list must be
declared by the Council as fuel poor i.e. at least 66% of the properties are fuel poor / The other (i.e. up to one third) of properties in the project are eligible for solid wall insulation, provided they are either in the same building, an immediately adjacent building or in the same terrace as the ones identified as fuel poor

The Council would also like to support the insulation of park homes, which usually have poor energy efficiency.

2.9Residents will be eligible for Flexible Eligibility where:

  • The householder is a Private Sector tenant or an owner occupier.
  • Householders are not on an Affordable Warmth qualifying benefit (if they are,do they qualify through the Affordable Warmth route) AND
  • Households have a low income as established in2.4 above, AND
  • The household have high energy cost scoring as established in2.5 above, OR
  • There is one or more person in the household that has a health issue exacerbated by a cold home as established in2.6 above.
  • ALL householders MUST bein need of a measure available through ECO2(t)[5].

Then they will form part of a Declaration and will be passed across to a delivery partner for assessment for measures to be installed.

2.10The final decision on whether any individual household can benefit from energy saving improvements under Affordable Warmth will be made by the obligated suppliers or their agents/contractors. Inclusion in a Declaration issued by the local authority to a supplier will not guarantee installation of measures, as the final decision will depend on i) survey carried out by suppliers agents/contractors and installation costs calculated, ii) the energy savings that can be achieved for a property, and iii) whether suppliers have achieved their targets or require further measures to meet their ECO targets.

3. Acting on behalf of another Local Authority

3.1This is currently not applicable.

4.Governance

4.1The Tamworth Borough Council Statement of Intent has been approved by the Corporate Director (Communities, Partnerships & Housing).

4.2Each eligible household will be asked to make a self–declaration over the phone or by email when agreeing with the Delivery Partner MEA BtCto go ahead with works. Records will be kept and held by the delivery partner. The Council will have access as and when requested to this information for any future audit. This process will be reviewed as the Flexible Eligibility process evolves.

4.3 The final decision on whether any individual household can benefitfrom energy saving improvements under Affordable Warmth and Flexible Eligibility will be made by the obligated suppliers or their agents/contractors.

5. Marketing & Referrals

5.1Tamworth Borough Council will identify eligible households through the Home Energy Advice Tamworth service. Referrals will also be accepted from energy companies and installers where there may be an opportunity for a householder to be FE qualifying.

5.2General marketing that has proved effective for Home Energy Advice Tamworth includes:

  • advertising or editorial in the Councils magazines to residents
  • mailouts addressed to the householder
  • articles in local newsletters with a community following, such as parish council or privately run village or town newsletters
  • emails to households who have previously contacted the Advice Service and asked to be kept informed of new offers
  • local councillor supported messages on twitter or in newsletters
  • Delivery Partner leafleting to properties near those with installations being carried out
  • leaflets in community venues
  • tweets from @marchesenergy; @beatcold
  • stalls at libraries or community events

5.3In order to target its marketing towards those households that are vulnerable to the effects of cold, the Council will:

  • work closely with Public Health to identify routes to vulnerable households such as flu vaccine marketing
  • carry out briefings for frontline Council staff and other agencies to encourage referrals, including housing and environmental health staff, health and social care workers, Care & Repair organisations, Age UK and the Citizens’ Advice Bureau
  • target mailouts to homes where income, property and health data indicate the householders may be eligible, such as:
  • MOSAIC – which provides geographical income data at postcode level.

6. Evidence, monitoring and reporting

6.1Data will be collected on each potential applicant through the governance processes described at paragraph 4 above. Households who contact the energy advice line and are eligible for ECO Flexible Eligibility together with the number of ECOFlexible Eligibility funded measures installed and the number of homes improved will be recorded by the Heat service, Marches Energy Agency (MEA) and Beat the Cold (BtC), as part of their quarterly Key Performance Indicators report to Tamworth Borough Council.

6.2The Council will audit the process by writing to 1 in 10 applicant households asking for evidence of eligibility at the time of the application. If a resident can’t provide the required evidence this will not affect their eligibility; however a high level of non-compliance will trigger a review of the Flexible Eligibility process.

7. Statement of Intent authorisation

Signed: Rob Barnes

Date: 11th August 2017

Name: Rob Barnes

Job Title:Corporate Director (Communities, Partnerships & Housing)

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