The Grand Designs portfolio is joining forces with the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy to champion the government’s Green Homes Grant scheme to make homes more energy efficient.

Homeowners and landlords across England will be to apply for vouchers worth up to two thirds of the cost of upgrading the energy efficiency of their homes through the scheme.

These grants will provide more than 600,000 homeowners in England with up to £10,000 to install insulation, heat pumps, draught-proofing and more in order to cut energy usage and bills. To qualify for a grant, all the measures under the Green Homes Grant must be completed by TrustMark registered and MCS-certified tradespeople before March 2021.

This has produced a need for additional TrustMark-registered tradespeople, which means that the Green Homes Grant scheme is expected to support more than 80,000 jobs in green construction.

Business and Energy Secretary Alok Sharma said: “Our Green Homes Grant scheme will enable people to improve the energy efficiency of their homes, cut their household bills and tackle climate change while supporting tens of thousands of jobs for skilled builders, plumbers and tradespeople across the country.  This is exactly the kind of scheme that I hope Grand Designs readers will want to make the most of.”

Karen Stylianides, editor of Grand Designs magazine, commented, “I’m delighted that the Grand Designs portfolio is working with BEIS to send out a clear message to renovators and home improvers about the opportunities afforded them by the Green Homes Grant. In light of the climate crisis we’re all facing, this scheme is a positive move in the right direction towards making England’s existing housing stock more fit for purpose when it comes to energy efficiency.”

Kevin McCloud, presenter of Grand Designs, editor-at-large of Grand Designs magazine and front man for Grand Designs Live, remarked, “I’m pleased to see that the government-led Green Homes Grant initiative is leading the drive towards a green approach to home retrofits. This is an ethos that I, through Grand Designs, have personally championed for two decades, and I am delighted that Grand Designs magazine and BEIS are partnering to help make it happen.’”

Richard Morey, managing director of the Grand Designs portfolio, said of the collaboration, “Grand Designs magazine is thrilled to partner BEIS and the Green Homes Grant. The Grand Designs brand values mirror the objective of the Green Homes Grant, namely to help deliver cleaner, greener, more energy-efficient housing stock to the UK. We plan to do all we can to help spread the word to our audience across our media platforms.”

Grand Designs magazine and Grand Designs Live are long-time supporters of green building techniques, eco-innovations and energy-saving improvements for the home. This partnership with BEIS will allow for a greater reach throughout eligible households, encourage tradespeople to benefit from this pioneering scheme, and help us all move towards a greener future for English housing.

Find out more today by visiting the Green Homes Grant hub on the Grand Designs magazine website, the new Green Homes Buzz website or GOV.UK