Issue - meetings

To consider the proposed changes to the Council’s existing Home Repairs and Adaptations for Vulnerable People Policy 2021-2026 and the ECO Flexible Eligibility Statement of Intent.

The Committee considered a report  which outlined the changes to the Council’s existing Home Repairs and Adaptation for Vulnerable People Policy 2021-2026 and the ECO Flexible Eligibility Statement of Intent, to support low-income households to maintain their health and wellbeing in a warm home, in response to the Government’s energy efficiency policy changes for low-income households.

Following changes by the Government to the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) to align with the strategy to be net zero by 2050 and focus on insulation measures and renewable heating systems, the Council provided a safety net to vulnerable residents where insulation is not practical or was too disruptive , or where emergency boiler repairs or renewals were needed to safeguard their health and wellbeing.

The Council’s existing policy had links to the Government’s ECO policy as households are eligible for support from the Council if they also qualified for ECO.  It was proposed that the Council’s Home Repairs and Adaptation for Vulnerable People Policy be amended to remove the requirement to qualify for another fuel poverty related domestic energy efficiency scheme – such as ECO and replace with a maximum income and savings threshold – the income threshold set at £31,000 in line with the ECO4 Flexible Eligibly criteria and that savings threshold set at £23,250 in line with the Care Act 2014.    The proposed thresholds to be adjusted if the ECO4 or Care Act thresholds were adjusted at any time whilst the Home Repairs and Adaptation for Vulnerable People Policy was in force.

The Government had also revised the local authority eligibility for the scheme as part of ECO and, whilst previously councils could opt to participate in this scheme by publishing their own qualifying criteria through a statement of intent, the Government had now advised that there was still an ability for the Council to participate in the scheme but they would now have to meet the Government's qualifying criteria. It was therefore proposed that the Council’s Statement of Intent be amended to include the new qualifying criteria.

RESOLVED (unanimously):  That

1          approval is given to the amendments to the Home Repairs and Adaptations for Vulnerable People Policy 2021-2026, as outlined in Appendix A to the report.

2          approval is given to the publication of the ECO Flexible Eligibility Statement of Intent, as outlined in Appendix B to the report.

3          delegate to the Director of Growth and Enterprise to review the maximum income and savings thresholds as required.