Stuart Anderson MP has welcomed a £16 million investment for South Shropshire residents from the Government's Warm Home Plan, which will deliver energy efficiency upgrades at more than 170,000 homes in England. It follows an intervention made by Stuart Anderson MP, who had called on Energy Ministers to support the retrofitting of homes in rural areas.
Stuart launched his campaign following reports by Historic England that, while nearly nine million homes in England were built before 1945, they can be made more energy efficient with a few simple steps. In response to a written parliamentary question submitted by Stuart, the Minister for Energy Consumers Miatta Fahnbulleh MP said:
"Our ambitious Warm Homes Plan will support investment in households, including rural homes, to install energy efficiency measures and low carbon heating to save families money on their bills."
Ministers have now named Shropshire as one of the areas to receive funding from the Social Housing Fund, after an application submitted by the Council was approved. Shropshire Towns and Rural (STAR) has been awarded £9.4 million to enhance the energy efficiency of homes in its portfolio. It will see retrofit decarbonisation measures at 1,300 of its homes by 2028. This will include more efficient heating, enhanced insulation, and the installation of solar panels where appropriate.
A further £6.7 million has been secured from the Local Grant, one of 73 projects across the country to receive a share of £500 million. Funding will be targeted at low income households who own or privately rent a home with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) between D and G. Measures could include insulation, solar panels, or an air source heat pump, if suitable. Government advice states that upgrades should be tailored to individual homes so that the most appropriate measures are installed. It adds that occupants will not be required to contribute towards the costs.
The scheme will be delivered in partnership with two neighbouring local authorities: Herefordshire and Telford and Wrekin. From April, households will be able to check their eligibility against their postcode using an online tool on the government website. A list of postcodes, published in November, shows that households in Craven Arms with a SY7 postcode and in Ludlow East with a SY8 postcode are most likely to benefit. The Government has stated that households may still be eligible if they meet income-related requirements.
A report published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), in October 2024, has confirmed that property age is closely associated with how energy efficient a home is. In 2022, ONS found that more than a quarter of those surveyed were not considering making improvements to their homes due to it costing too much. In light of these findings, Stuart has called on the government to publish a rural home insulation plan. He has said that the plan should consider the factors that affect energy use in older homes and the affordability of measures that are needed to install upgrades in them.
Stuart Anderson MP said:
"Nearly nine million homes in England were built before 1945. Many of these are in rural areas like South Shropshire, where residents face extra challenges in heating their homes – including when looking at making energy efficiency upgrades. So, I am glad that residents in areas like Ludlow and Craven Arms will benefit from funding as part of the Warm Homes Plan. There are more areas in South Shropshire that also require support. While they may not all be low-income households, the cost of upgrades can be a real deterrent. I have called on Ministers to publish a rural home insulation plan - supporting rural families who cannot meet the cost of upgrades."
Residents can contact their local authority directly for support. For more details about the support available, please visit Stuart's Energy Support Guide. This contains with tips on energy tariffs, home insulation, and others ways in which to make to make homes more energy efficient.
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