Frequently Asked Questions

Power Up Homes Haringey is a local scheme helping homeowners make their homes more energy efficient and cheaper to run, with combined funding of up to £12,500 and further group-buy auction discounts. By bringing residents together through a group-buy approach, the scheme secures better prices on upgrades such as solar panels, heat pumps and insulation. This includes a mix of council funding, national grants and group-buy savings, helping to significantly reduce upfront costs. The programme provides support at every stage, making it simple and straightforward to improve your home with confidence.

Installing retrofit improvements to your home improves comfort and the health of occupants. This is achieved through more stable indoor temperatures via improved insulation, airtightness, more efficient heating systems, and ventilation benefitting air quality. Solar and battery systems allow for energy security and reduced bills. Initial research also shows that retrofitted homes benefit from increased asset value.

These savings mean investments go further and allow homeowners to maximise the measures they can install, and thus the benefits they can achieve. It is a great opportunity to futureproof your home!

Eligible homeowners may benefit from a combination of funding, including up to £7,500 towards a heat pump through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS), group-buy discounts of up to 25%, and up to £5,000 cashback through the Power Boost Haringey Fund. The total support available will depend on the upgrades installed and your property circumstances.

The table below shows how you can combine different grants and discounts:

Yes. The scheme is designed to allow homeowners to stack multiple forms of financial support, such as government grants, local funding and group-buy discounts. This can significantly reduce the cost of installing low-carbon home improvements.

A refundable £150 deposit is required to secure a detailed home assessment and tailored improvement plan. If you proceed with installation, a standard installation deposit will also be payable to the installer. Grant funding and discounts are applied to reduce the overall cost.

The Power Boost Haringey Fund is issued by Haringey Council after installation works are completed and evidence of this has been provided to the council by the homeowner. This helps ensure public funding is used appropriately and that improvements have been delivered as agreed. Applications must be made prior to installation, as the grants of up to £5,000 are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

To access the application form and for more information visit: haringey.gov.uk/power-boost-haringey-fund

The fund is available to private homeowners living in the London Borough of Haringey who are installing more than one measure through the Power Up Homes scheme. They should not be receiving other public funding for the same works (other than BUS for the heat pump installation, or the discounts from the Power Up auction of up to 25%).

After you apply to the council's fund via climate@haringey.gov.uk, the council will assess whether you are eligible for funding and what the funding amount would be, based on submitting all the necessary information.

Grants of up to £5,000 are available on a first-come, first-served basis. The council only has £100,000 available for grants. This means it is beneficial to register early and ensure you follow the necessary steps before applying — e.g. paying deposits and arranging home visits straight away.

Most installations such as heat pumps and solar panels are typically classed as permitted development, meaning planning permission is not usually required. However, additional permissions may be needed for listed buildings or properties in or adjacent to conservation areas covered by Article 4.

More information is available at:

• To see if you need planning permission, check Haringey's planning pages.
• For planning advice see Haringey's Planning Advice pages.

Proposals for solar panels and heat pumps with an external unit will need to be assessed for their suitability. If your home is within a Conservation Area, permitted development rights may not apply and you would need to apply for planning permission to proceed.

You can see further information on Haringey's energy efficiency in conservation areas page. If you need advice on heritage matters, please visit Haringey's Planning Advice page for heritage.

Insulation, airtightness and window measures are likely to be suitable, and a Retrofit Assessor can confirm this for you. A heat pump may also be possible if there is a suitable place to install the external unit and if any other flats have a heat pump installed already — this will be explored by your Renewables surveyor. If it is not possible, your £150 will be returned to you.

Solar can be a little more complex. You would need to contact your freeholder and/or other leaseholders to discuss options for delivering solar panels and battery systems within your building. With the necessary consents, we may be able to install solar panels for the building. You can still consider insulation measures or a heat pump if there is a suitable place for the external unit.

Yes. In England, air source heat pump installations must comply with the MCS 020a noise assessment standard, which sets a limit of 37 dB(A) measured at the nearest neighbouring property's habitable room. This is a calculated assessment carried out at design stage using manufacturer sound data alongside factors such as distance to neighbouring properties, positioning, and reflecting surfaces.

Compliance with this limit is required for installations to qualify under Permitted Development rights. If the calculated noise level exceeds 37 dB(A), planning permission may be required. Installations are carefully designed to optimise unit location, select appropriate equipment, and incorporate mitigation measures where needed to ensure systems operate efficiently while minimising any impact on neighbouring properties.

If the detailed technical assessment shows that installation is not feasible, or if costs increase significantly beyond your initial expectations, your assessment deposit will be refunded in full.

Your Power Up Plan will include measures that our installers are capable of installing within this scheme. This includes:

• Solar panels and battery systems
• Air source heat pumps
• Cavity wall insulation
• Internal wall insulation
• Loft insulation
• Roof insulation
• Suspended floor insulation
• Solid floor insulation
• Secondary glazing
• Double and triple glazing
• Electric vehicle charging point
• Smart heating controls
• Enabling repairs on existing energy systems to allow for installation of a renewable energy system

Please note that if you are applying to the Power Boost Haringey Fund, you need to check the eligibility of measures. We will not be supporting LED lighting, external wall insulation or ventilation measures at this time. For ventilation details see gov.uk Approved Document F.

The Power Boost Haringey Fund can support the installation of new air source heat pumps, solar panels, battery storage and insulation measures. Insulation measures can include:

• Cavity wall insulation
• Internal wall insulation
• Loft insulation
• Roof insulation
• Suspended floor insulation
• Solid floor insulation
• Secondary glazing (where double glazing is not possible due to heritage constraints)
• Double and triple glazing (if upgrading from existing single glazing)

Please see Haringey's website to clarify which two or three measures apply. Where households are considering multiple fabric improvements alongside renewable technologies, we strongly recommend a tailored home assessment as part of the design process.

Savings will depend on your current heating system and how much energy your home uses. Many households replacing oil, LPG or electric heating systems see significant savings. For homes switching from gas, running costs can be similar initially, but with improved efficiency and better protection against rising fuel prices over time.

Air source heat pumps are typically around three times more efficient than gas boilers, meaning they use less energy to produce the same level of heat. However, they run on electricity, which is currently more expensive per unit than gas. Overall costs depend on how efficiently the system is designed and set up.

This is why Power Up Homes Haringey takes a whole-home approach, combining technologies such as solar PV and battery storage with fabric improvements like insulation. Generating your own electricity and reducing heat loss can help offset electricity use and maximise overall savings. Customers who opt into ongoing servicing and support plans can further improve performance over time.

Installing multiple improvements together can increase energy savings, improve comfort and maximise available financial support. A whole-home approach also helps ensure that new technologies, such as heat pumps and insulation, perform efficiently and work well together. For example, by insulating your home you reduce heat losses, reduce the amount of heating you need, and may need a lower capacity heat pump to heat your home.

Timescales vary depending on demand and the type of improvements being installed. From initial registration to completed installation, the process typically takes 8 to 16 weeks once final approvals and deposits are in place.

The group-buy auction will take place once enough people have registered with Power Up Homes. We expect to run several auctions between March and August to allow for people signing up at different times. We highly recommend that you sign up early to take advantage of the Power Boost Haringey Fund.

Installers take part in a structured group-buy auction process, where trusted suppliers compete to offer the best balance of quality and price. All participating contractors are vetted and must meet recognised industry standards for retrofit delivery.

Yes. Homeowners receive a tailored improvement plan and technical guidance to help them understand suitable upgrades for their property. This helps ensure improvements are appropriate, deliver real energy savings and align with recognised retrofit standards.

Your Renewables installer will make all the necessary applications on your behalf once you agree the finalised quotes and have paid your installation deposit. A DNO notification is required for both solar and heat pump installations, but the BUS grant only applies to heat pumps.

The Power Up Homes Haringey scheme is delivered by RetrofitWorks, a not-for-profit cooperative working with vetted local contractors and community partners. Installations follow recognised industry standards and include quality assurance and warranty protection.

The Power Boost Haringey Fund is run by Haringey Council, in partnership with RetrofitWorks. The fund is delivered as part of the Power Up Homes Haringey scheme, and improvement measures funded by the Power Boost Haringey Fund are delivered by RetrofitWorks.

Installations are delivered by vetted contractors and include quality assurance checks, warranties and consumer protections. RetrofitWorks also provides oversight to help ensure works are completed to the required standard. You can contact RetrofitWorks if you have any issues.

All renewables works will be installed under MCS frameworks. This offers an additional layer of quality oversight and a feedback mechanism on your satisfaction with the service.