The Homes Decarbonisation Skills Training Competition and the Government’s Energy Bill Relief Scheme

£9.2 million funding available to train in the energy efficiency, building retrofit and low carbon heating sectors

The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy has announced funding of £9.2 million will be available for training providers to deliver training programmes to support the energy efficiency, retrofit and low carbon heating sector.

• Installation training to the specific technology standard – for example, National Occupational Standards, PAS 2030:2019 standards, PAS 2035 standards, MCS standards or higher.
• Training of one or more individual energy efficiency and/or low carbon heating measures so that these can be successfully installed. This includes those with existing construction skills and new to the sector.
• Support for training in retrofit assessor and retrofit coordinator skills to PAS 2035 standard, leading to the relevant qualification.

1. Read the guidance which is available here. 
2. Complete your application form by 17 October 2022.

If you would like more information, please contact HDTrainingCompetition@nottinghamcity.gov.uk. 

Yesterday the Government announced the new business energy package, called the Energy Bill Relief Scheme. It will provide a discount on wholesale gas and electricity prices for all non-domestic customers, including all UK businesses, the voluntary sector and public sector whose gas and electricity prices have been significantly inflated due to global energy prices.

The Relief Scheme will apply to fixed contracts agreed on or after 1 April 2022, as well as to deemed, variable and flexible tariffs and contracts. It will apply to energy usage from 1 October 2022 to 31 March 2023, running for an initial six-month period for all non-domestic energy users. The savings will be first seen in October bills, which are typically received in November.

No, customers do not need to take action or apply to the scheme to access the support as it will automatically be applied to bills. To administer support, the Government has set a Supported Wholesale Price – expected to be £211 per MWh for electricity and £75 per MWh for gas, less than half the wholesale prices anticipated this winter – which is a discounted price per unit of gas and electricity. This is equivalent to the wholesale element of the Energy Price Guarantee for households. It includes the removal of green levies paid by non-domestic customers who receive support under the scheme.

This will vary depending on their contract type and circumstances:

• Non-domestic customers on existing fixed price contracts will be eligible for support as long as the contract was agreed on or after 1 April 2022. Provided that the wholesale element of the price the customer is paying is above the Government Supported Price, their per unit energy costs will automatically be reduced by the relevant p/kWh for the duration of the Scheme. Customers entering new fixed price contracts after 1 October will receive support on the same basis.
• Those on default, deemed or variable tariffs will receive a per-unit discount on energy costs, up to a maximum of the difference between the Supported Price and the average expected wholesale price over the period of the Scheme. The amount of this Maximum Discount is likely to be around £405/MWh for electricity and £115/MWh for gas, subject to wholesale market developments. Non-domestic customers on default or variable tariffs will therefore pay reduced bills, but these will still change over time and may still be subject to price increases. The Government is working with suppliers to ensure all their customers in England, Scotland and Wales are given the opportunity to switch to a fixed contract/tariff for the duration of the scheme (if they wish), underpinned by the Government’s Energy Bill Relief Scheme support.
• For businesses on flexible purchase contracts, typically some of the largest energy-using businesses, the level of reduction offered will be calculated by suppliers according to the specifics of that company’s contract and will also be subject to the Maximum Discount.

A parallel scheme, based on the same criteria and offering comparable support, but recognising the different market fundamentals, will be established in Northern Ireland.
If a business is not connected to either the gas or electricity grid, equivalent support will also be provided for non-domestic consumers who use heating oil or alternative fuels instead of gas. Government will announce further details on this shortly.

Government will publish a review into the operation of the scheme in three months to inform decisions on future support after March 2023. The review will focus on identifying the most vulnerable non-domestic customers and how the Government will continue assisting them with energy costs.

For more information, click here.

All NIA members will soon receive an email regarding your membership renewal, and we hope to see you return once again!

The NIA has had a fantastic year, including holding its first Parliamentary event, feeding into numerous consultations, and inputting into governmental discussions. Your input is vital to ensure the good work continues, to promote quality and collaboration across industry, so that the challenge ahead can be possible.

The NIA consists of industry experts, installers, system designers and product manufacturers. It promotes high quality insulation in terms of products and service, so that consumers get what they expect and deserve. One of the ways we do this is through our close relationship with the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and actively responding to government consultations. To find out more about the NIA membership, please visit our website here.

NIA members looking to play a part in the drafting of consultation responses are invited to subscribe to our policy mailing list.

Subscribe by emailing Fiona.chestnutt@gemserv.com to be added to the policy mailing list.