Powering Change - Energy efficiency grants for businesses
Businesses and for profit organisations can apply for an energy efficiency grant of up to £5,000 for support to reduce their energy use and cut carbon emissions. This is funded by the UK Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund.
There is £50,000 available for this 2025/26 grant round.
Any organisation that applies for the Powering Change grants for community organisations will not be eligible to receive a business grant.
Apply for grant funding to support your business to:
- increase energy efficiency
- move to a low carbon economy
- reduce greenhouse gas emissions
Grants are paid in arrears. This means that your business must buy the equipment or complete the works in full and then reclaim the grant from the council. Payments will be made when the project is completed, and your business has evidenced payments.
The deadline for applications is Monday 20 October at 12 noon.
Funding and eligibility
To qualify for this grant your business must:
- be in North Northamptonshire
- be a small or medium-sized enterprise (SME) with:
- fewer than 250 employees
- an annual turnover that does not exceed £50 million or an annual balance sheet that does not exceed £43 million
- no more than 25% owned by an enterprise that is not itself an SME
- have been trading for more than 12 months on the application deadline date
- meet Minimum Financial Assistance requirements
- pass credit checks
- provide at least one quote (or 3 quotes for items above £5,000)
- provide accounts
- match fund a minimum of 50% of the project costs
- ensure that planning permission (if required) has already been obtained or applied for
- not have received another grant from North Northamptonshire Council in 2025/26.
We can help fund:
- lighting and lighting controls
- heating and heating controls
- insulation
- energy efficient machinery and equipment (e.g. air compressors)
- solar panels
- heat pumps
- biomass boilers
- energy storage
- building energy management systems
We cannot help fund:
- computers, laptops, and tablets
- transport-related measures (e.g. electric cars and charging points)
- repairs of existing equipment (e.g. boilers)
- installation of smart meters
- landlord obligations
- costs that can be claimed back from elsewhere (e.g. VAT)
- costs that are not auditable (e.g. cash payments that are unsupported by an approved financial system)
- costs towards banking charges or repayment of debt
- retrospective costs (e.g. activities already completed, or costs incurred before the agreed funding start date)
Refer to our UK Shared Prosperity Fund business grants privacy notice for further information about privacy.
If your application is successful, the following conditions apply:
- Grant Payment: Funding is paid in arrears upon receipt of a fully evidenced claim form, including copies of invoices, bank statements, and evidence of completed works and installations.
- Data Protection: Your organization must comply with the provisions and principles of the Data Protection Act 2018.
- Non-Transferable: The grant is not transferable between projects or organizations.
- Accuracy: The grant is awarded based on the information provided in the application. If this information is found to be misleading or the supported project is canceled, the council is entitled to repayment of the grant monies.
- Consents and Permissions: It is the applicant's responsibility to ensure all relevant consents and permissions are in place (e.g., planning permission, DBS checks, licenses). A grant award does not grant permission to proceed with any work without the correct statutory authorization.
- Spending Deadline: Successful grants must be spent by 28th February, 2026, and must comply with the grant arrangements.
- Monitoring: Successful grants must comply with appropriate monitoring systems, including a final report and relevant documentation such as receipts.
- Funding Limit: Applications for funding requests over the maximum amount will be rejected.
- Energy Bills: The applicant must commit to providing relevant energy bills for 12 months before and after installation.
- No Retrospective Costs: Grants cannot contribute to projects already underway. Any costs incurred before confirmation of the grant award are not eligible and will not be included. Retrospective project costs are not eligible.
Apply
We are more likely to support innovative plans that reduce carbon emissions, improve energy efficiency, and transition to renewable energy sources.
You need to include:
- year-end accounts
- at least 1 quotation for items or works where the total cost is under £5,000. If the works total £5,000 or more, three quotations are required.
Once you have applied, we may ask for further information and supporting evidence.
Community organisations can apply for the community Powering Change grant - if you're unsure if you should apply as a community organisation or a business, email [email protected].
This is a competitive grant competition. Submission of an application does not guarantee funding will be awarded.
UK Shared Prosperity Fund
These grants are funded through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, which provides £3.5 billion of funding for local investment by March 2026.
The UKSPF provides funding for local investment, with a focus on building community pride and opportunities across the UK.
Last updated 12 September 2025