£40mn funding available through the Ofgem Energy Redress Scheme
Howard Lake | 12 December 2024 | News
Charities and community energy groups across England, Scotland and Wales can again apply for a grant from the Ofgem Energy Industry Voluntary Redress Scheme.
The Energy Redress Scheme has today opened its tenth funding round. There is £40 million available through four funding streams.
Since 2018 the scheme has funded more than 611 projects across England, Scotland and Wales, with a total of £128 million allocated.
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The funding is generated by Ofgem collecting voluntary payments from companies that may have breached Ofgem administered rules. The scheme has been running for six years. The payments made to charities and community energy groups are managed by the Energy Saving Trust, an independent organisation dedicated to promoting energy efficiency, low carbon transport and sustainable energy use.
The Energy Redress Scheme prioritises support for:
- vulnerable people with their energy bills
- the development of innovative energy-related products or service
- and projects to empower individuals to reduce their carbon emissions.
Four funding streams
The funding streams available are:
- The Main Fund, containing £27 million – aimed at projects seeking grants between £50,000 and £2 million that will support households in vulnerable situations.
- The Small Project Fund, containing £1 million – aimed at projects seeking grants between £20,000 and £49,999 that will support households in vulnerable situations.
- The Innovation Fund, containing £6 million – aimed at projects that will develop innovative products or services to benefit households. Applicants can apply for grants between £20,000 and £1 million.
- The Carbon Emissions Reduction Fund, containing £6 million – aimed at projects that will reduce UK carbon emissions and empower households to reduce their carbon footprint. Applicants can apply for grants between £20,000 and £1 million.
Previous projects have included impartial energy advice services supporting vulnerable people, and research projects aimed at making sure that the needs of elderly people and disabled people are met by new energy technologies.
Graham Ayling, senior project manager at Energy Saving Trust, said: “We’re pleased to be able to offer this new funding, enabling voluntary sector organisations to provide vital support for those most in need in their communities. The funding will also support projects that will ensure no one is left behind as the UK transitions to net zero.”
Cathryn Scott, regulatory director at Ofgem, said: “It’s fantastic to see the scheme in its tenth round of funding offering another £40 million worth of grants – much of which is a direct result of Ofgem’s compliance and enforcement work. We strongly encourage charities and community groups working in the energy sectors across England, Scotland and Wales to apply.”
The deadline for applications to this funding round is 5pm on 15 January 2025, via the Energy Redress Scheme site.
If your organisation has not yet registered with the scheme and plans to apply for funding it must register at least 10 working days before the relevant fund closes to allow time for eligibility checks to take place.
More energy funding sources
- £10 million available from Energy Redress Scheme (15 August 2019)
- National Grid announces £50 million energy support fund (1 November 2022)
- Applications open for Smart Energy GB in Communities fund (16 June 2016)
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About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.