Home Energy Grants – ONE becomes a Sustainable Energy Community

Home Energy Grants

ONE becomes a Sustainable Energy Community

ONE recently met with Declan Meally, a veteran of the Defence Forces and currently Head of Department Transport and Communities of the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI). We discussed the benefits to ONE and its members of being part of the SEAI’s Sustainable Energy Community (SEC) network and enrolled without delay. ONE has now joined over five hundred communities across Ireland that are tackling climate change in their own localities with the aim of being more energy efficient in our own homes and ONE buildings, and by switching to renewable energy where possible.

One benefit of becoming members of this national network is that a mentor will be assigned to ONE to provide guidance and support. Through the mentor and the network, we will be able to share solutions and experiences from other communities similar to our own. The SEAI mentor will assist ONE in planning suitable projects and ONE will be eligible to apply for dedicated funding.

Declan provided some very useful general information for ONE members. For the purpose of grant assistance, the information below is divided into two categories as follows:

  1. Free energy upgrades for those who cannot afford to pay. This is aimed at homeowners who receive certain welfare payments, e.g. The Fuel Allowance. The scheme is referred to as the Warmer Homes Scheme and while there is a long waiting list, it would be useful for members to understand the eligibility criteria which is contained in the link below

https://www.seai.ie/grants/home-energy-grants/free-upgrades-for-eligible-homes/

  1. Those who can afford to pay are divided into two further categories as follows:

https://www.seai.ie/grants/national-home-retrofit/

ONE would like to find out if any of our members are considering carrying out some home energy upgrades in the next 12 months and are interested in being a participant in a group project through ONE. If yes, then please let us know. There are no commitments and this is just a call out to see if there is any current interest. If there is a group of members interested then ONE will ask SEAI to provide further information.