Heating Grants Doncaster: Warm Homes and BUS

Doncaster Council accepted £1,604,111 of Warm Homes: Local Grant funding in March 2025, enough for energy efficiency work on around 110 privately owned homes. It was the council's sixth successful bid for retrofit funding, bringing the total to £12.2 million over four years. With that many homes and limited money, early applications matter.

Doncaster at a glance

How homes are heated: 82.3% of Doncaster households heat with mains gas only and just 3.8% with electricity only. 1.0% use tank or bottled gas, 0.9% oil (about 1,190 homes) and 0.7% solid fuel such as coal (about 870 homes). Source
Age of homes: 29.3% of Doncaster's homes were built between 1945 and 1972 and 20.6% between 1919 and 1939. 13.3% date from before 1919. Source
Tenure: 62.8% of Doncaster households owned their home in 2021, a third of them outright. 19.4% rented privately and 17.0% rented socially. Source
Local grant: Doncaster Council accepted £1.6 million of Warm Homes: Local Grant funding in March 2025 for energy efficiency work on around 110 privately owned homes. It was the council's sixth successful retrofit bid, bringing its total to £12.2 million over four years. Source
Energy ratings: About 51% of homes with an EPC in Doncaster are rated band D or below (median score 68, band D), against 47% across England. Based on certificates lodged in the 10 years to March 2025. Source

Warm Homes: Local Grant

The scheme is for privately owned homes, lived in by the owner or rented from a private landlord, with an emphasis on low-income households. Nationally, the home must be rated EPC D to G and household income must usually be £36,000 or less, or you must receive certain benefits or live in a qualifying postcode. Check your eligibility through the GOV.UK form.

It funds insulation and low-carbon heating. It doesn't fund gas or oil boilers.

Who should apply first

The council's report says the money focuses on thermal improvement works to privately owned and privately rented homes, with an emphasis on low-income households. If you live in a cold, poorly insulated home and struggle with bills, register your interest early, because 110 homes across a borough this size is a small number.

Private landlords can benefit too, though they may be asked to contribute towards the cost.

Boiler Upgrade Scheme

The national scheme pays £7,500 off an air or ground source heat pump, with no income test. For the few thousand Doncaster homes on oil or LPG and off the gas main, there is a further £1,500 until March 2027. Your MCS installer applies on your behalf.

ECO4

Ofgem says ECO4 runs until 31 December 2026. It is funded by energy suppliers and aimed at low-income and vulnerable households. Contact your supplier or a local installer to ask whether they are still taking referrals.

Doncaster homes and what they need

Interwar and postwar semis

Cavity wall and loft insulation are the quickest ways to raise the EPC. Many have already had some, so a survey shows what is left to do.

Red-brick terraces in town and the former pit villages

Solid walls often mean an EPC of D or E. Internal or external wall insulation may be offered.

Bungalows

Large roof areas mean loft insulation has a big impact. Underfloor insulation helps where floors are suspended timber.

Areas covered

Engineers who cover Doncaster work across areas including Bessacarr, Balby, Armthorpe, Bentley, Wheatley, Hatfield, Thorne, Mexborough, Conisbrough and Tickhill.

View Doncaster on Google Maps

Questions people in Doncaster ask

Someone offered me a free boiler. Is it genuine?

Council schemes don't charge to check eligibility, and the local grant doesn't fund gas boilers. If anyone asks for money upfront, don't pay and report it.

How do I find my EPC?

Search your postcode on the GOV.UK energy certificate register. If there is no valid certificate, ask whether the grant survey includes one.

Sources

Also nearby: Heating grants in Sheffield, Heating grants in Hull, Heating grants in Wakefield, Heating grants in York

All heating grants locations →