The BrumEnergy consortium, a partnership of Birmingham-based voluntary and community organisations, has secured a £500,000 contract through National Energy Action (NEA)’s Warm Homes, Healthy Futures programme, extending its work to support residents living in cold, damp, and energy-inefficient homes.

Building on the success of the Local Energy Advice Demonstrator (LEAD) project funded by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and the Midlands Net Zero Hub (MNZH), which ran until end March 2025, the BrumEnergy consortium is continuing and expanding its work across the City. Led by BVSC (Birmingham Voluntary Service Council), the partnership includes both returning and new organisations: Birmingham Settlement, Community Energy Birmingham, ecobirmingham, Home from Hospital Care, and MECC Trust.

This funding comes at a critical time with nearly one quarter of households across the Birmingham City area currently living in fuel poverty,¹  significantly higher than the national average. This new project will be a welcome boost for the city, where many residents are facing the double challenge of rising energy costs and poor-quality housing.

The Warm Homes Healthy Futures programme focuses on supporting people with disabilities and long-term health conditions that are made worse by cold, damp, and mouldy homes. It is designed to work hand-in-hand with health and social care professionals, community-based health & social care organisations and carers, offering clear referral routes into practical, community-based energy support.

"BVSC is delighted to have the opportunity to expand the work of the BrumEnergy Consortium to support more of Birmingham's communities in meeting their home energy needs. Thanks to this generous investment from NEA, our local network of community anchor organisations will continue to do what it does best - helping local people right on their own doorsteps."

'As part of the Warm Homes, Healthy Futures programme many people are already getting much-need help and we are thrilled to be working with BrumEnergy. Our homes should keep us warm and healthy. This ground-breaking programme is allowing us all to connect the dots more effectively – finding the gaps, sharing critical learning, and supporting one another as professionals tackling fuel poverty and health inequalities - making a real difference to those who are struggling.'

To those eligible for support, BrumEnergy will provide for FREE:

• Tailored, independent home energy advice
• Benefits checks and support to maximise household income
• Help signing up to the Priority Services Register (PSR)
• Carbon monoxide (CO) safety awareness
• Support to help people stay warm, safe, and healthy at home

The Warm Homes, Healthy Futures programme is funded through the Vulnerability and Carbon Monoxide Allowance (VCMA) - a regulatory fund provided by the UK’s four Gas Distribution Networks - for the West Midlands is Cadent. Coordinated nationally by NEA, the programme represents the largest collaborative VCMA-funded initiative to date, with a total investment of £12.2 million, aiming to support 30,000 people across the UK.

The BrumEnergy Warm Homes, Healthy Futures project is live now and will run until the end of March 2026.

For more information on BrumEnergy visit: www.brumenergy.info

For referrals, partnership enquiries, or information about BrumEnergy, sign up to our online information session on 16^th July 3-4pm or please contact: Erin Glover BrumEnergy Project Coordinator: [email protected] / [email protected]

For more information on the Warm Homes, Healthy Futures programme, visit:
www.nea.org.uk/projects/warm-homes-healthy-futures/

If you support people with health conditions or disabilities, whether you work in health or social care, are a carer, or run a community health organisation, and would like to refer into the service or set up a referral relationship, we’d love to hear from you!