Glasgow City Council has approved two measures to support affordable warmth in the city.

One of the measures is an update of the local authority's Energy Efficiency Loan Scheme (EELS), and the other is the development of an energy switching service for households in the city.

The Council's EELS was established in 2002 to help owner occupiers in Glasgow fund energy efficiency improvements such as new boilers or gas infill, with owners able to access grants of up to £200 and loans of up to £2,500 on an interest-free basis for up to three years.

The EELS loan fund – administered on the council's behalf by the Wise Group – is around £300,000 but recent high demand for loans has led to a review of the criteria for the scheme.

As a result, some of the new recommendations include:

• The loan scheme should be extended to include other energy efficiency measures, not just boilers or gas infill

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• Where the loan is for a replacement boiler, this should be an A++ rated boiler or better, meaning that the householder is getting the most efficient product on the market thereby saving on heating costs and carbon emissions

• The amount of the loan should be reduced from £2,500 to £1,500 (with the exception of gas infill projects) as the majority of loans are currently below this level. It would also leave more funding available for more people when demand for the loans is high

• All applicants for a loan are subject to Home Energy Check to determine if they qualify for any free measures through one of the Scottish Government schemes.

With regards to the second measure by Glasgow City Council – the energy switching service – this would provide residents with impartial and independent energy switching advice through an initial temporary agreement between the council's G-Heat service (managed by the Wise Group) and social enterprise Citrus Energy.

The service would follow energy advice visits to households, and would take into account the householder's circumstances. The service would also look after the switching process for individual households and would also follow up until the end of the contract.

Bailie Liz Cameron, Executive Member for Jobs and the Economy at Glasgow City Council, said: "In an era of high energy prices, it is important that the council provides support and advice for households of different types across Glasgow.

"I am confident that the expanded Energy Efficiency Loan Scheme and the new energy switching service will prove to be invaluable for many people in the city."

(JP)