Eastbourne Climate Emergency Strategy
Housing and energy
Information on the council's net zero housing retrofit study, renewable energy initiatives in the borough and where to find energy saving advice and help.
Energy Saving Trust
Information and advice on home energy efficiency measures to keep your home warm whilst reducing your carbon footprint and energy bills.
Energy Saving Trust - Energy at home
Fuel Poverty
Fuel poverty is a serious and complicated issue, which energy suppliers are helping to tackle in a number of ways.
Free household energy advice service
Contact Energise Sussex Coast for support, advice and information on tariffs, energy saving and retrofitting.
Energy advice from Energise Sussex Coast
In partnership with Energise Sussex Coast, Eastbourne Eco Action Network is training "energy champions" - volunteers who can provide energy and retrofit advice to local households and help develop community energy projects and to provide basic energy and retrofit advice to local households, especially those in fuel poverty. If you would like to volunteer with this network and receive free training and mentorship from it, please contact [email protected].
Warm Home Check Service
This service provides free advice for anyone struggling to keep warm at home. If you are on a low income, you may be eligible for a free home visit which includes:
- an assessment of your home with advice on keeping warm
- small home improvements
- larger home improvements (depending on funding)
- emergency temporary heating
The service is funded by East Sussex County Council and delivered by Citizens Advice East Sussex. Further information can be found at Warm Home Check Service.
Grants for homes
Warm Home Local Grant (WHLG)
The Council has secured £4m from the Government's Department for Energy Security and Net Zero to help people on low income save money on their energy bills by offering grants to make their homes more energy efficient. You could be eligible if your home is:
- privately owned (either by you or your landlord) and
- has an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) of D, E, F or G - if you do not know your home's EPC, you can find it out when you apply.
Your household income should also be £36,000 a year or less. If you earn more than that, you might still be eligible if you live in a certain postcode area or if someone in your household is getting certain benefits.
Grant measures can include free solar panels to generate your own electricity, and loft and cavity wall insulation.
To apply or find out more please contact the Warm Home Check service.
The WHLG scheme is managed by the Council and only uses experienced contractors that have been thoroughly vetted. All work is overseen by an independent assessor, and is covered by both an insurance backed guarantee and strict contract requirements. The main contractor for upgrading homes in the Wealden area is Osborne Energy, and the main contractor for upgrading homes in the Eastbourne, Hastings, Lewes and Rother areas is Retrofit Works.
Energy Company Obligation (ECO4)
This scheme is overseen by Ofgem and delivered by energy companies. It is only available until March 2026. There have been problems with poor quality insulation work installed through the scheme. More information is available in a National Audit Office report.
If you have had an installation under ECO4 and wish to complain please visit
For background on ECO 4 please visit https://www.consumer-rights.org/eco/eco4-scheme-your-questions-answered/
These grants are managed differently to the WHLG grants which have a number of checks and controls in place to ensure that works are done to the correct standard.
Decarbonising our Council Housing Report
Summary of groundbreaking research on retrofit and decarbonisation of council owned homes at scale.
Decarbonising our housing stock - Roadmap for 2030 zero carbon (PDF, 343 KB)
OVESCO
A community group run by local volunteers in East Sussex that creates community owned renewable energy projects so the local community can become zero carbon.
Suncoast Solar Farm Proposal for Eastbourne
Low Carbon is proposing a new solar farm with battery energy storage, located on land west and east of the East Coastway Line. The project will generate approximately 20 Megawatts (MW), producing enough clean energy to power 6,400 typical family homes each year.
UK Green Building Council
The UKGBC aims to improve the sustainability of the built environment, by transforming the way it is planned, designed, constructed, maintained and operated.
Report: UK housing: Fit for the future?
This report aims to assess the measures that need to be adopted in the housing sector to both manage climate change impacts and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Committee on Climate Change - Housing Fit For The Future (PDF, 4 MB)
Great British Insulation Scheme
On the 14 September 2023, the government launched the £1 billion Great British Insulation Scheme to help some families insulate their homes. Families in lower council tax bands with less energy-efficient homes will be offered upgrades such as roof, loft or cavity wall insulation. Use an online checker for the Great British Insulation Scheme to find out if you are eligible
Boiler Upgrade Scheme
You can get one grant per property. Current grants are available for £7,500 towards an air source heat pump, £7,500 towards a ground source heat pump (including water source heat pumps and those on shared ground loops) and £5,000 towards a biomass boiler.
