A new report shows that the UK Government’s Warm Homes Plan has real potential to improve energy affordability, but that households are struggling to navigate an increasingly complex home energy upgrade market.
The report Supporting the Shift, which was commissioned by Citizens Advice and in-part researched by Changeworks, found that householders have difficulties getting clear, reliable information to understand different energy efficient technologies.
It discovered that wealthier households are better able to pay for expert advice or ask people they know who’ve already had technology installed, while households on a lower income are more likely to end up making poor decisions as a result.
Following the research this led to the recommendation that the UK Government develops a national advice strategy built around three levels of consumer support: information, advice, and assessments.
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Background
The research explored how informed owner-occupiers in England, Wales and Scotland felt when making decisions about home energy upgrades, and what information and advice they needed. The research drew on 31 interviews and five workshops, involving 68 participants in total.
Key findings included:
- The information and advice landscape is fragmented, contradictory, and sometimes undermined by misinformation.
- “Whole house” planning advice was valued but often difficult to access, leaving installers as the main source of guidance.
- Post-installation support, such as help using a heat pump, was a common advice gap regardless of funding route.
- Awareness of consumer rights was low, with protections applied inconsistently.
The research also distinguished between two groups. Self-funded consumers, who faced a high information burden but drew on a wider range of sources and relied more on independent expertise, and grant-funded consumers, who had less choice, transparency and documentation, with notable gaps in independent advice.
Recommendations
The report recommends that the UK Government develops a national advice strategy built around three levels of consumer support: information, advice, and assessments. It argues that the success of the Warm Homes Plan depends on grounding policy in a clear understanding of how people seek help and what actually works.
There is currently a lack of detailed proposals on how to meet this information and advice challenge. This report sets out its own recommendations to help fill that gap.
This research was commissioned by Citizens Advice, and authored by People Powered Retrofit and Shortwork.
Research was carried out by Changeworks, Futureproof Cumbria and National Retrofit Hub.