Does BrumEnergy really operate free of charge?

Yes. if you meet our eligibility criteria, BrumEnergy provides home energy advice and support completely free of charge. We offer level 2 energy advice support, ranging from a short chat to a more detailed conversation, free attendance at events and access to Warm Home Packs. 

We are able to do this as we receive government funding to provide independent home energy advice.

If you’re looking for a more specialised service or don’t meet our criteria, some of our organisations can offer additional support (for an appropriate fee) or will direct you to further assistance from another project or organisation.

How do I know if I am eligible?

To be eligible for our free support, you must be a resident in Birmingham and priority will be given to those who fall into one to any of the following categories:

• Residents in ‘hard to treat’ homes: If your home faces challenges like single walls rather than cavity walls or structural issues that make it hard to keep your home warm, we are able to provide tailored support 
• Diverse communities: Our services are inclusive aiming to provide support to older individuals, those from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities, diverse faith communities and individuals without English as their first language
• Facing challenges?: If you’re dealing with long-term health issues, disabilities or managing a tight budget, BrumEnergy is dedicated to offering support.
  
  

How can organisations get involved or support BrumEnergy?

If you are an organisation that helps people with energy advice, or other cost of living or environment related advice, or works with eligible residents, you could:

• promote our services
• link to/ refer to one of our delivery partners
• get more involved in our consortium

Please get in touch to discuss possibilities.

For more information on how to get involved, please contact us at [email protected]. 

What is a Warm Home Pack?

Warm Home Packs provided FREE of charge by our organisations and contain a range of items to keep you warm and help you to save energy.

The packs contain items such as:

• Hot water bottles
• Blankets
• Hats, gloves, scarves
• LED lightbulbs
• Radiator reflector panels
• Draught proofing tape and film for windows and doors
  
  

Can I get help from BrumEnergy if I am renting/ do not own my home?

BrumEnergy offers support and advice that can be specific to you and your circumstances. Our energy advisors will provide advice and solutions that could be easy to implement in your home. 
While we can offer advice for how to retrofit your home, BrumEnergy don’t have any powers to force landlords to spend money on your home.

How do I know if my home is ‘hard to treat?’

A hard-to-treat home is one that has solid walls with no cavity; is of non-traditional construction; or is a designated building e.g. a listed building or located in a conservation area.

The majority of homes in the inner city of Birmingham are Edwardian and Victorian brick-built terraces which have no wall cavities and are draughty.  In the outer city, many of the homes are 1930s and later, these lack wall cavities and often have underlying structural problems which cause problems when adding wall insulation.  
  
Many homes which have had extensions (both temporary and permanent) over the course of many decades can make adding external wall insulation and treating the property harder and more expensive. 

What does retrofit mean? 

Retrofit is when changes are made to an existing building to make it more environmentally friendly and cost-effective. Or more simply -  a way of upgrading your home to lower energy bills and to be more comfortable.

For example, BrumEnergy might suggest that you make changes like adding better insulation, improving heating systems or using appliances that save energy. 

Our energy advisors will be able to work with you to see what the best retrofit changes might be for your house based on you, your home and your circumstances. 

We will be able to also advise you on local, regional and national programmes which provide suitable retrofit support.

How is BrumEnergy possible? 

BrumEnergy's success results from securing over £800,000 in funding through the Government's transformative Local Energy Advice Demonstrator (LEAD) Programme, supported by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) in partnership with the Midlands Net Zero Hub (MNZH).  

BrumEnergy is run by a consortium of local Voluntary, Community, Faith and Social Enterprise sector organisations: BVSC (Birmingham Voluntary Service Council); Acocks Greener CIC; Birmingham Council of Faiths: Footsteps – Faiths for a Low Carbon Future; Community Energy Birmingham; ecobirmingham; MECC Trust; The Good Work Coop – Birmingham Green Doors and Witton Lodge Community Association, and is one of nine LEAD projects in the Midlands and 36 projects nationwide.