LCBP Grants Fiasco
LCBP Grants Fiasco
Problems with DTI's Low Carbon Buildings Programme grant allocations
news | generalHundreds of UK homeowners hoping to receive
grants from the DTI's
Low Carbon Buildings Programme (LCBP) have been left disappointed again this month. The
LCBP which replaced the
Clear Skies programme in April 2006 offers grants to help home owners with the
capital costs of installing
micro-generation projects - usually
PV Solar Panels. But the scheme has proved to be so popular that the limited funds available are insufficient to meet demand.
Low Carbon Buildings Funding
Since 1st December 2006, funding has been offered on the first working day of each calendar month at 9.00am until the funding pot for that month has been used up. In December 2006 the money ran out by the 20th, in January by the 12th, and in February by noon on the first day.
By 10.15am on 1st March the whole of the March pot of £500,000 had been allocated with just 189 households successful in their application. Many hundreds of households were left disappointed again.
The total fund available in the LCBP
household stream is £12.7 million (increased from the original £6.5 million because demand was much greater than had been predicted). A monthly cap (currently £500k) was introduced to prevent the the fund being exhausted before the programme comes to an end in 2009.
RE Installers Struggling
Renewable energy installers are struggling to find work with the majority of households not willing to go forward with projects without receiving LCBP funding first. They and the homeowners involved are desperately hoping that the Chancellor will increase the total funding available in the Budget on March 21st and that the monthly funding cap will be removed. However, a DTI spokesman said that, "
the low carbon buildings programme was designed to stimulate public interest in renewable energy and that it was not possible to give a grant to everybody."
Applying for an LCBP Grant
While it is possible to apply on a paper application form - it takes 15 days for the form to be processed and so the monthly funding pot will be exhausted long before that time. Applications do not roll over to the following month and the paper forms are returned to the applicant if successful with an invitation to re-apply the following month. Therefore, to stand any chance of success, it is necessary to make the application online on the
Low Carbon Buildings Programme website at 9.00am on the first working day of the month with fingers crossed.
Article Last Modified: 14:29, 6th Mar 2007
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