The Low Carbon Buildings Programme (LCBP) has already allocated £6.8m to householders to install microgeneration technologies and, following the addition of an extra £6m in the Chancellor’s March Budget, applications are set to open for the remaining £11.9m. Since April 2006 the LCBP has directly funded 2175 installations on homes: 242 mini-turbines, 313 PV projects and 1467 solar thermal heating systems.

The grant scheme was put on hold in March while it was decided how to best deal with the rapidly increasing demand for grants. Key changes to the application criteria include the removal of the monthly cap and a new requirement to have planning permission before applying. The Government is currently consulting on removing the need for planning permission for the majority of microgeneration installations but it must be in place for LCBP grant applicants in the meantime.