Government consults on removing the high cost to heat threshold for the Warm Home Discount in England and Wales

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero opened a consultation on 25 February 2025 on expanding the Warm Home Discount for winter 2025/26¹. The proposals would remove the high cost to heat threshold in the Warm Home Discount (England and Wales) Regulations 2022 and increase the spending available in Scotland for suppliers to allocate through the Broader Group¹. The consultation closes at 11.59pm on 24 March 2025¹.

Under the current scheme, households in England and Wales qualify for the Core Group 2 only if they receive certain means-tested benefits or tax credits and live in a property assessed to have a high cost to heat score¹. Removing that threshold would make all households in receipt of means-tested benefits eligible for the £150 rebate¹. The government estimates this would offer support to an additional 2.7 million households, around 6.1 million in total for winter 2025/26¹. It says extending the scheme would almost double the number of households with children receiving the discount, to 1.9 million¹.

The qualifying benefits listed in the consultation are Housing Benefit, Income Support, income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, the Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit, Universal Credit, and Child Tax Credit or Working Tax Credit where household income falls below a certain threshold¹.

The scheme applies across Great Britain, with differences in how it operates in England and Wales compared with Scotland¹. It is not available in Northern Ireland, where separate support is available¹. The scheme currently runs to March 2026¹. In 2023/24, Core Group rebates reached over three million households in Great Britain, an increase of around 650,000 households and around £97 million of support compared with 2022/23¹. Last winter, around 2.9 million households (92%) received their rebates automatically, while the remaining 250,000 (8%) received theirs after contacting the Warm Home Discount helpline¹.

Providing the current £150 discount to over three million households costs an average annual dual fuel energy billpayer approximately £19, or £21 including Industry Initiatives, rising to £22 in 2025/26¹. The consultation states that the changes could add £15 to the average annual dual fuel energy bill¹. It says the estimated spending target would need to be revised from £511 million to over £800 million if the high cost threshold was removed, and that the additional 2.7 million rebates would increase the total GB spending envelope by around £400 million, from around £600 million currently to £1 billion¹.

Fair By Design, an independent organisation, responded to the consultation on 25 March 2025². It welcomed the proposal to remove the high cost to heat threshold in England and Wales, with a proportionate adjustment in Scotland². It also said it would like to see the discount expanded to those on non-means tested disability benefits and the amount raised at least in line with inflation².

Why it matters for households

Households in England and Wales that receive means-tested benefits but do not currently meet the high cost to heat score would become eligible for the £150 rebate if the proposals are implemented for winter 2025/26¹. The government estimates around 2.7 million additional households would receive support, bringing the total to around 6.1 million¹. The changes would be funded through a levy on all domestic gas and electricity customers, and the consultation states the changes could add £15 to the average annual dual fuel energy bill¹. The scheme is not available in Northern Ireland¹. The Winter Fuel Payment and Pension Age, Child and Winter Heating Payments in Scotland are separate schemes.

What happens next

The consultation closes at 11.59pm on 24 March 2025¹. The government says it is also exploring options to improve support beyond winter 2025/26¹. Fair By Design said it looked forward to these issues being addressed as part of a consultation on the future of the Warm Home Discount scheme expected later this year².