Who is involved in the Programme?

DECC’s Low Carbon Buildings Programme

Using the links below you can find out more information on each of the streams; including details on the types of projects that have been funded and the statistics for each stream.

Phase 1 – managed by the Energy Saving Trust

• Stream 1 – Householders - CLOSED
• Stream 1 – Communities - CLOSED
• Stream 2A - CLOSED
• Stream 2B - CLOSED

Phase 2 – managed by BRE (Building Research Establishment)

Please visit the Phase 2 website

About the Programme

Launched on 1 April 2006, DECC’s Low Carbon Buildings Programme Phase 1 replaced the previous DTI Clear Skies and DTI Major PV Demonstration Programme. Phase 1 of the programme, with an overall budget of £35 million is currently still open to householders for applications for heat generating technology grants and are allocated on first come first served basis, as long as funds last. The public, not for profit and commercial organisations streams have now closed for applications under this part of the programme (see above for details of alternative funding for public sector and not for profit organisations). The programme was developed to demonstrate how energy efficiency and microgeneration can work hand in hand to create low carbon buildings.

In December the Low Carbon Buildings Programme Phase 2 was launched as DECC's £50million capital grant stream for the installation of microgeneration technologies by organisations including local housing authorities, housing associations, schools and other public sector buildings and charitable bodies. Visit the Phase 2 website for more information.

The aims of the programme are as follows:

1. To support a more holistic approach to reducing carbon emissions from buildings by demonstrating combinations of both energy efficiency measures and microgeneration products in a single development.
2. To see demonstrated on a wider scale emerging microgeneration technologies (with a focus on building integrated technologies).
3. To measure trends in costs of microgeneration technologies. It is expected that these costs should reduce over the lifetime of the programme against a 2005 baseline.
4. To raise awareness by linking demonstration projects to a wider programme of activities including developing skills and communicating the potential of microgeneration to change the attitudes and behaviour of consumers. Larger scale projects will seek to engage the construction industry in project replication by demonstrating the business case for developing low carbon buildings.