Energy Industry Voluntary Redress Scheme

The funds can pay for anything from making a home more energy efficient, to providing advice that helps consumers keep on top of their bills.

The Energy Redress scheme aims to deliver the following basic outcomes:

• support energy consumers in vulnerable situations

• deliver benefits to the types of consumers that were negatively impacted by the specific issues that triggered the redress payment

Any additional priorities linked to a funding round will be included in the fund details published when the round opens.

Who can apply

Please note: The Main and Small Fund are only open to registered charities. If you are a Community Interest Company, Community Benefit Society or Cooperative Society please see the Carbon Emissions Reduction and Innovation Fund Guidance.

Restrictions

The Energy Redress Scheme cannot fund activity that directly benefits any Ofgem licensee, or any other person or company that is regulated by Ofgem which makes a voluntary redress payment, or any person or organisation that has close links to any such organisation. Benefit could be through direct financial gain, positive PR or offsetting the cost of delivering their obligations. As such this also means Energy Redress projects cannot fund direct referrals into supplier obligations such as the Warm Homes Discount, Priority Services Register or enable Energy Company Obligation measures to be installed. Projects can raise awareness of these services, but direct referrals should be made by other funded activities or through a third party.

Eligible expenditure

The Energy Redress Scheme can provide capital or revenue funding and can provide up to 100 percent of the project cost. It can fund projects lasting up to two years and the minimum grant request for the Small Projects Fund is £20,000 and for the Main Fund is £50,000.

Applicants should consider whether the activity proposed can be funded in any other way and whether it is already being delivered elsewhere (see Annex 1 below). Applicants should also critically assess whether the project will represent value for money in terms of the positive outcomes delivered for the funding requested.

Activities that can be funded through the Energy Redress Main Fund and Small Projects Fund include, but are not limited to:

• engaging vulnerable consumers with energy issues and delivering energy advice and support that does not duplicate existing services

• installation of energy saving or renewable energy measures that cannot be funded from other sources

• training and education on energy issues that are targeted at supporting vulnerable consumers

• crisis support, linked to energy bills or the energy efficiency of a property, only as part of a wider energy advice project aimed at providing sustainable change for a client.

Activity that CAN NOT be funded by the Energy Redress Scheme include, but are not limited to:

• energy saving measures that can be funded from another source, such as the Energy Company Obligation (ECO), other government or devolved government schemes or an organisations’ own capital programme.

• installation costs for renewable energy technologies that are funded through government schemes or would normally be covered by an organisations’ own capital programme.

How to apply

Step 1 - Register your organisation

Organisations wishing to access the Energy Redress Scheme must complete a simple online information form so that Energy Saving Trust can check whether they are eligible to apply. Organisations that meet the initial criteria will be notified and will be emailed a link to create an account, through which they can apply for all subsequent rounds.

Please note: Organisations only need to register once. In order to be considered for the forthcoming funding window, please ensure registration is completed no later than two weeks prior to the application deadline. This is to allow enough time to check your eligibility. Those who register after this time will not be considered for the current window.

Step 2 - Apply for funds

The amount of funding available through the scheme varies throughout the year and will be reviewed on a quarterly basis in January, April, July and October.

When funds become available, eligible organisations will be notified to use their online account to apply for funds. The system allows organisations to create, review, save and submit funding applications in multiple rounds. Organisations should only set up one account, which can have multiple users.

Eligible organisations will be informed if there are any additional priorities applied in each funding round and the maximum grant amount that can be requested. The minimum grant amount that can be requested is set at £20,000. This is to ensure the fund supports high quality projects that have the ability to make a real difference.

Please note that redress grants are paid quarterly in arrears, on receipt of monitoring reports.

For more information, and to apply, visit: https://energyredress.org.uk/apply-funding