The loan would be linked to your property, rather than to you, and is designed to help spread the cost of energy saving improvements by allowing households to pay back the loan from the energy savings made each year.

The ‘save-as-you-pay’ initiative is part of the Governments plan to cut emissions from all 22 million UK households by 29% by 2020.

Installing solar panels can reduce energy bills by up to 80%, and can even earn money from selling energy back to the grid. But many are unable to fund the initial cost of installing such measures, which can amount to around £7000-£10,000.

Whilst this new scheme would help to reduce this initial investment, critics argue that new home owners could be forced to pay for the previous owners loans, and could lead to problems selling a home in the first place.

“I think it could have a detrimental effect on the housing market. Just the principle of attaching a loan to the property complicates things unnecessarily and it interferes with the free market value of the house,”  Gary Smith, President of the National Association of Estate Agents says.

However, Ed Miliband argues that the improvements made to the home, and therefore the energy savings, would far outweigh any loan attached to the property:  “You’ll find that the energy bills are significantly lower so, say, you’ll be having a few hundred pounds off your energy bills and offsetting that you’ll have a couple of hundred pounds in payments.”

The Conservatives argue that any loan paypack should be linked to household energy bill, allowing greater transparency: “It would not be a debt attached to the home, we would pay it off over time through the electricity bill,” Greg Clark, the Conservatives energy spokesman.

The Goverment is due to launch a new Feed in Tariff for solar panels and wind turbines in April, allowing homes to sell energy back to the grid in return for tax-free cash. This is coupled with existing grants available towards the cost of cavity wall and loft insulation.

Whatever your view, it seems evironmental policy, and specifically how to encourage households to cut emmissions, will be a popular point of discussion in the run up to this year’s general election.

According to recent estimates, as many as 2 million homes could qualify for help towards cavity wall or loft insulation in the form of free government insulation grants, but have yet to come forward to claim this help.

Home owner, tenants and landlords can all benefit from insulation grants, and it is not dependant on whether you receive benefits or not. There is very little effort needed from the person claiming the grant, and the insulation company will usually deal with most of the paper work.

Find out if you qualify for a free insulation grant and make sure your home is as warm and efficient as possible this winter and beyond.

“It is shocking that so many families have to borrow money to pay for essentials such as heating… families cannot continue to scrape by like this,” Fergus Drake, Save the Children’s UK Director said.

Those who  earn less than £12,000 said they would struggle this winter, and over half said they would be forced to borrow money to pay for heating during Christmas.

According to Save the Children,  those most likely to go cold this winter are families where parents earn less than £30k per annum combined. However,  where these families receive certain benefits, insulation grants are available to cover up to 100% of the cost of home insulation, therefore making instantly cutting an annual energy bill by around £250, for free.

Cavity wall or loft insulation could help to prevent heat escaping from the home and thus reduce bills by up to 20% a year. The effect is instant and the work takes just a few hours to complete.

According to recent reports, 3.5 million eligable homes have not yet claimed a free insulation grant. Find out  if you’re eligable to receive a free insulation grant towards cavity wall of loft insulation.

It says that 3.6 million homes are entitled to loft or wall insulation, which could save £150 off their annual energy bill, but so far only a fraction of the amount available has been claimed for.

Free insulation grants are available for cavity wall and loft insulation, preventing around 40% of heat from an average home escaping through walls and lofts.

Huge savings can be made by those households who take advantage of the insulation grants. And it is not just available for households on low incomes or the elderly – anyone can claim a grant of up to 50% of the cost of insulation.

Find out how much you are due using our free grant calculator.

More heat is lost through your walls than any other part of your home. Cavity wall insulation helps to instantly reduce heat loss by 40% by plugging the gap between the two layers of brick that make up your outer wall. By filling this gap with insulation, it makes it difficult for heat to pass from the inside of your house, to the outside world.

The actual insulation material used can vary, but is typically made up of pockets of air, which prevents convection from occurring and greatly reduces any heat loss

Not all houses can receive cavity wall insulation. As the name suggests, there needs to be cavity, or gap, between the two layers of brick which make up your outside wall. If your home was built between 1930 and 1995, you are most likely to be suitable.

The installation process is simple and relatively quick. Cavity wall insulation can be installed within about 2 hours within minimal disturbance inside your home. Holes of around 25mm in diameter are drilled into the outer layer to reach the cavity inside. Several holes are drilled a metre or so apart and the insulation material is blown or injected in.

Cavity wall insulation can help to:

* Reduce your heating bills by up to £115 per year   (source: Energy Saving Trust)

* Increase the value and saleability of your home

* Increase your energy rating

*Create a warmer and more comfortable environment for your family

Is my home suitable for cavity wall insulation?

It is very important to check the suitability of your home for receiving cavity wall insulation before any work is done. A survey should always be carried out prior to any work being done, and a qualified surveyor will be able to assess suitability. He or she will consider the exposure of outside walls to wind and rain, and also the method of construction used.

If you have a problem with damp or moisture inside your home, you should notify the surveyor of this before any work is carried out.

Similarly, if there has been any frost or structural damage to the walls in the past, the surveyor also needs to be made aware of this.

Can I receive a grant towards the cost of my insulation?

In 2008, the Government announced a scheme to help homeowners and tenants with the cost of insulating their home. Insulation grants are available to homeowners and tenants looking to reduce their energy bills, and make their home more eco-friendly by installing insulation.

The grants are part funded by the government, and part funded by the energy companies (at a cost of £910 million! Source: Energy Saving Trust).

Calculate your insulation grant eligibility here.

Households will be expected to save around £120 a year off their energy bills, and the project is also predicted to cut CO2 emmissions by 88,000kg per year as a result of the new insulation scheme.

Full story: http://www.hounslowchronicle.co.uk/west-london-news/local-hounslow-news/2009/11/02/fuel-bill-relief-for-1-100-hounslow-homes-109642-25073685/

With the cost of fuel set to continue to rise, the Council has agreed to work in partnership with agencies to “ensure that the residents Aberdeenshire get access to the most cost-effective ways ofpaying for their domestic fuel”.

Energy efficient measures, including cavity wall and loft insulation, have already been installed in 3,800 council homes, and the Council agreed this figure should increase over the next 2-3 years.

It is yet another example of where insulation can be used to dramatically reduce heating bills.

Full story: http://www.deesidepiper.co.uk/news/Support-for-fuel-poverty-action.5793798.jp