£230m tranche of Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme funding opened

Pictured: The Royal Northern College of Music used funding from the scheme to fit solutions including solar panels. Image: Salix Finance

Launched three years ago, the Scheme provides funding for energy efficiency upgrades and clean energy solutions to public sector organisations in England, including schools, leisure centres, hospitals and council buildings.

It has provided more than £2bn to more than 900 oganisations to date. Supported projects include upgrades to lighting systems and insulation; heat pump installations and onsite solar arrays.

The most recent round of funding was awarded this March; 114 public sector bodies shared a funding pot of £409m.

Further organisations are now being encouraged to apply for a share of a new £230m round of funding under the Scheme. Successful applicants will be able to spend the money between the 2024 and 2025 financial years.

The Government estimates that the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme will result in a 75% reduction in emissions from public sector buildings in England by 2037, against a 2017 baseline.

It also claims that the funding will result in annual energy bills for the sector in 2037 that are £650m lower than if no interventions had been made.

Energy Efficiency and Green Finance Minister Lord Callanan said the new funding will help build on “fantastic progress so far” in reducing energy use and greenhouse gas emissions.

Callanan was until recently co-chair of the Government’s Energy Efficiency Taskforce. He and other members of the initiative were told in September that the project would be disbanded and its work “streamlined” into other ongoing government-led workstreams.

This news came shortly after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak weakened policy targets for replacing oil and gas boilers with heat pumps and for improving the energy efficiency of new and rented homes. Lord Callanan told the Conservative Party Conference earlier this month that Sunak’s decision was swayed by landlords in the private housing sector.