Warm Homes Loan Scheme for Solar & Battery Storage
A new government-backed scheme is expected to make solar panels and home battery storage cheaper to finance through participating lenders.
The initial consumer launch phase is expected from September 2026. Participating lenders and their actual customer rates have not yet been announced.
Current status — August 2026
The Warm Homes Loan Scheme is confirmed, but participating lenders and their customer rates have not yet been announced.
Scheme confirmed
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has formally published the scheme rules and the first lender application round has closed.
Initial launch expected September 2026
The current Scheme Rules describe September 2026 as the expected start of the initial consumer launch phase.
Lenders and rates pending
Participating lenders, actual interest rates, APRs and individual launch dates have not yet been published.
Last updated: 16 August 2026
Warm Homes Loan Scheme at a glance
The key points for homeowners considering solar panels or battery storage.
Solar PV loan cap
Up to £15,000 of eligible solar PV installation costs can be supported under the Scheme.
Battery storage loan cap
Electrical battery storage has its own £15,000 Scheme loan cap, including standalone installations.
Potential rate reduction
The Scheme aims to reduce the lender’s nominal annual fixed rate by up to approximately five percentage points.
Certification required
Eligible solar and battery systems must use MCS-certified products and an appropriately certified MCS installer.
*The interest-rate reduction is subject to the Scheme grant cap and may be lower depending on the lender’s starting rate and loan term. Actual customer rates and APRs have not yet been announced.
How the Warm Homes Loan Scheme works
You won’t borrow money directly from the government. The loan will come from a participating lender, with government support used behind the scenes to help reduce the interest rate.
You apply to a participating lender
The lender provides the loan and carries out its normal affordability and creditworthiness checks.
Government support reduces the lender’s cost
The Scheme can provide the lender with a non-repayable capital grant of up to 20% of the eligible loan amount, subject to the Scheme rules.
You receive the supported loan rate
The lender uses that support to offer a lower nominal interest rate than its equivalent unsupported lending rate.
What solar and battery work can be financed?
The scheme covers new installations and some upgrades to existing systems, together with eligible work needed to complete the installation.
Solar PV
New rooftop solar installations and additional panels added to an existing solar PV system can qualify.
- New rooftop solar PV systems
- Additional panels on an existing installation
- Installation labour and equipment
- Scaffolding and temporary safety equipment
- Eligible grid connection work
Battery storage
Battery storage can qualify whether it is installed with new solar or added as a standalone home battery system.
- Battery storage paired with new solar
- Standalone battery installations
- Integration with an existing solar system
- Monitoring and control setup
- Required isolators, breakers and protection
EV charging
An EV chargepoint can be included where it forms part of an eligible solar and/or battery installation.
- EV charger supplied with solar and/or battery work
- Associated electrical installation work
- Charger and installer must meet OZEV requirements
- Not eligible as a standalone WHLS installation
What's not covered: The scheme does not fund replacement roofing or other structural work required before solar panels can be installed. A lender may choose to offer separate conventional finance for costs outside the Scheme.
What could the interest-rate reduction look like?
The scheme is designed to reduce the lender’s nominal annual fixed interest rate by up to approximately five percentage points. Actual customer rates will depend on the lender, loan term and the amount of government support available.
Illustrative example only
A five-percentage-point reduction could, for example, reduce a nominal annual rate of 7% to around 2%.
This is not a guaranteed 2% loan
No participating lender has yet published its Warm Homes Loan Scheme customer rates.
The maximum reduction may not apply to every loan. The final supported rate will depend on the lender’s starting rate, the loan term and the scheme grant calculation.
The scheme rules refer to the nominal annual fixed interest rate — not APR. Lenders will publish their actual APRs and product terms when their consumer products launch.
Why we are being careful with the numbers: the government has confirmed how the rate-support mechanism works, but lenders have not yet announced their actual products. Greenway Energy Ltd will update this page when confirmed lender rates and APRs become available.
Who can use the Warm Homes Loan Scheme?
The scheme is intended for a broad part of the normal consumer market rather than being restricted to lower-income households.
Owner-occupiers
Homeowners can use an eligible loan to finance qualifying improvements to an existing domestic property that they own and occupy.
Private landlords
Private rented sector landlords can also use the scheme to finance eligible improvements to domestic rental properties.
DESNZ does not impose a minimum or maximum household income for the scheme.
The scheme itself does not require a particular EPC rating before a customer can apply.
DESNZ does not restrict eligibility to a particular type of domestic property.
Individual lenders will still carry out their own affordability and creditworthiness checks and may apply additional lending criteria, including property or EPC requirements.
From survey to completed installation
The exact application journey will vary between lenders, but the scheme rules already set out the main checks that must happen before and after installation.
Survey and system design
Your property, electricity usage and requirements are assessed so that an appropriate solar and/or battery system can be designed.
Receive an eligible quotation
For the standard application route, the quote must come from an MCS-certified installer and include the required installation, cost and system information.
Apply to a participating lender
The lender checks affordability, creditworthiness, property eligibility, the proposed measures and the installer’s certification.
Finance is approved
Each lender will decide how its funds are released. This could include an upfront payment, a deposit, direct payment to the installer or another arrangement.
The system is installed
Greenway Energy Ltd completes the agreed installation, testing and commissioning in accordance with the relevant technical and certification requirements.
MCS completion and verification
The completed installation is lodged on the MCS Installation Database, generating the certificate used by the lender to verify completion.
Quotations ready for the Warm Homes Loan Scheme
The current scheme rules require standard-route quotations to include specific information such as the applicant and installation address, the installer’s MCS number, an itemised cost breakdown and the capacity of the proposed system. Greenway Energy Ltd will provide quotations containing the required installation information.
Individual lenders may use different application and payment processes. Their final consumer journeys have not yet been published.
Why MCS certification matters
MCS certification is built into the Warm Homes Loan Scheme requirements for solar PV and battery storage, but product and installation certification are not the same thing.
The installation must meet the relevant MCS requirements
Eligible solar PV and battery storage work must be carried out by an appropriately MCS-certified installer and meet the relevant MCS design and installation standards.
MCS product certification applies where an MCS product standard exists. For solar PV this includes standards covering PV modules and solar mounting systems.
Battery storage is different: MCS currently provides an installation standard for battery storage rather than a separate MCS product-certification standard for the battery itself.
Greenway Energy Ltd is MCS certified for solar PV and battery storage. We will provide the design, installation, commissioning and MCS certification required for qualifying installations.
MCS-certified installer
The installer must hold the appropriate MCS certification for the technology being installed.
Solar PV product standards
MCS product standards apply to relevant solar PV products, including PV modules and solar mounting systems.
Battery installation standard
Battery storage installations are covered by the MCS Battery Installation Standard, MIS 3012:2025.
Installation certification
After completion, the installation is lodged with MCS so that the certificate can be used to verify the completed work.
Product certification is technology-specific: there is currently no separate MCS product-certification standard for domestic battery storage or conventional solar and hybrid inverters. The relevant MCS installation requirements still apply to the completed system.
Participating lenders and rates
Lender products are the final piece of the picture. Greenway Energy Ltd will keep this section updated as official lenders, rates and application details are announced.
Lenders and customer rates have not yet been announced
The first lender application window has closed, but DESNZ has not yet published the names of participating consumer lenders or their Warm Homes Loan Scheme products.
We will not publish speculative rates or lender names. This section will be updated when official information becomes available.
Last checked: 16 August 2026
What we’ll publish here
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1Participating lenders
Confirmed banks, building societies and other participating lenders.
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2Interest rates and APRs
The actual supported rates, representative APRs and how they compare with each lender’s normal lending.
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3Loan terms and eligibility
Available repayment periods, borrowing criteria and any lender-specific requirements.
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4Deposit and payment arrangements
How each lender releases funds, including deposits and final installation payments where this information is published.
What happens next: DESNZ expects to open a further lender application window later in 2026. As participating lenders launch their consumer products, this page will be updated with confirmed information from official sources.
Warm Homes Loan Scheme FAQs
The main questions homeowners are likely to have as the scheme moves towards its consumer launch.
Can I apply for a Warm Homes Loan now?
Not yet. The initial consumer launch phase is expected from September 2026, but participating lenders and their individual application routes have not yet been announced.
Will I definitely be able to borrow at 2%?
No. A rate of 2% is only an illustration of how a reduction of approximately five percentage points could work if a lender’s equivalent unsupported nominal rate were 7%.
Actual interest rates, APRs and loan terms will be set by participating lenders when their products launch.
Is the Warm Homes Loan Scheme a grant?
No. The customer receives a loan from a participating lender and repays it under the agreed loan terms.
Government support is provided to participating lenders behind the scenes to help them offer lower supported interest rates.
Can I finance solar panels through the scheme?
Yes. Eligible solar PV installations currently have a scheme loan cap of £15,000.
This can include a new rooftop solar PV installation or additional solar panels added to an existing installation, subject to the scheme and lender requirements.
Can I install a battery without buying new solar panels?
Yes. Standalone electrical battery storage is an eligible measure under the current scheme rules.
Electrical battery storage currently has its own scheme loan cap of £15,000, subject to the applicable installation and lender requirements.
Can I add battery storage to my existing solar system?
Yes. Battery storage can be added to an existing solar PV installation where the proposed system is technically suitable and meets the relevant scheme and MCS installation requirements.
The electrical battery storage measure currently has its own scheme loan cap of £15,000.
Can solar panels and battery storage be financed together?
Potentially, yes. The current scheme rules set separate loan caps of £15,000 for solar PV and £15,000 for electrical battery storage.
This means a combined solar and battery project could potentially include up to £30,000 of eligible scheme-supported costs.
This is not an automatic entitlement to £30,000. Participating lenders can choose which eligible measures their products support and will determine their own maximum lending, affordability criteria and approval requirements.
Can an EV charger be included?
Yes. An EV chargepoint can be included as an ancillary cost where it forms part of an eligible solar PV and/or battery storage installation.
A standalone EV charger is not currently eligible. Where a charger is included, the chargepoint and installer must meet the relevant OZEV requirements.
Can I claim an OZEV grant and also finance the EV charger through the Warm Homes Loan Scheme?
No, not for the same chargepoint installation.
The current scheme rules state that a borrower who has already received an OZEV grant, or a grant from another source, cannot use a Warm Homes Loan Scheme loan to cover the installation cost of that same EV chargepoint.
This restriction applies only to the EV chargepoint cost. It does not prevent otherwise eligible solar PV or battery storage from being financed through the Warm Homes Loan Scheme.
Is there an income limit?
No income threshold is imposed by the Warm Homes Loan Scheme itself.
Participating lenders will still carry out their normal affordability and creditworthiness checks and may apply their own lending criteria.
Do I need a particular EPC rating?
The scheme itself does not currently impose a mandatory minimum EPC rating.
Individual lenders may introduce additional property or EPC requirements as part of their own lending criteria.
Do I need an MCS-certified installer?
Yes. Eligible solar PV and battery storage work must be carried out by an appropriately MCS-certified installer and meet the relevant MCS installation requirements.
Greenway Energy Ltd is MCS certified for both solar PV and battery storage installations.
Which banks and lenders are participating?
DESNZ has not yet published the participating consumer lenders or their Warm Homes Loan Scheme products.
Greenway Energy Ltd will update this page when lender names, rates, APRs and application details are officially confirmed.
Information changes: the Warm Homes Loan Scheme is still moving towards consumer launch. This page reflects the current official scheme information and will be updated as DESNZ and participating lenders publish further details.
Official sources
Information on this page has been checked against current guidance from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and MCS.
Warm Homes Loan Scheme
The official DESNZ scheme page, including lender participation information, updates and supporting documents.
View on GOV.UKWarm Homes Loan Scheme Rules
The detailed government rules covering eligible borrowers, technologies, loan caps, lender requirements and scheme operation.
Read the Scheme RulesMCS Standards & Tools Library
Current MCS technical and certification standards, including requirements for solar PV and electrical battery storage installations.
View MCS standardsInformation checked: 16 August 2026. The Warm Homes Loan Scheme is still developing. Greenway Energy Ltd will update this page when DESNZ and participating lenders publish material new information.
Greenway Energy Ltd
Considering solar or battery storage?
The right system should be designed around your property, electricity usage and future plans — not around a finance product.
Greenway Energy Ltd surveys, designs and installs MCS-certified solar PV and battery storage systems across London and the surrounding areas.
Book a Free Solar SurveyWhat we’ll take care of
- Property and electrical survey
- System design and yield assessment
- MCS-ready quotation and documentation
- DNO applications and notifications where required
- Installation, commissioning and certification
Warm Homes Loan Scheme finance will be provided by participating lenders and will remain subject to their eligibility, affordability and creditworthiness requirements.