LONDON, 12 October 2026 — The public trusts local leaders to deliver the government’s “Great Home Upgrade”, new polling shows, as councils across England warn that the current money to do it is running out and not being replaced quickly enough.

On 28 September the Energy Secretary, Miatta Fahnbulleh, promised to devolve the Warm Homes Plan, “the biggest investment in home upgrades in British history”, and to give “Mayors, local government and communities the power to invest billions of pounds in their place”. Polling by Climate Barometer, supported by UK100, suggests the public supports the plans.

Asked who they most trust to lead the work of tackling climate change in their area, such as improving homes, protecting green spaces or shifting to clean energy, local councils came out on top (31%), ahead of the national government.

Among people who voted Reform UK at the 2024 general election, 29% trusted their local council most, against 24% for the national government. Among those who voted Conservative in 2024, the margin was 33% to 28%.

Despite those findings, the same survey found the public expects Whitehall to take responsibility. Asked who has the biggest responsibility for preventing harm from climate impacts such as flooding, overheating and drought, 44% chose the national government and only 19% their council. Asked who should pay for most of the costs of climate impacts in the UK, 41% chose the national government and arm’s-length bodies, against 28% for local government.

Nearly half (44%) do not believe the government will protect them and their homes from extreme heat, flooding and storms, and while three in four people (74%) experienced extreme heat this summer, only 14% noticed cooling measures such as tree planting or shading where they live.

Demand has outstripped the money

Local leaders say the trust is matched by demand they cannot meet. At the end of 2024 councils bid for £1.7 billion of Warm Homes: Local Grant funding; they have been granted £500 million to 2028, the i Paper reported last month.

Liverpool, Leeds, Northumberland and Tunbridge Wells have stopped taking applications. Cambridgeshire and Peterborough have allocated their whole £3.5 million budget for the year. Sheffield is rationing by strict need. Lewisham has identified 4,500 eligible council homes and funding to upgrade 800 of them by 2028.

City of York Council has paused its scheme for the rest of the financial year after allocating its entire budget with almost no advertising, and expects next year’s waiting list to be full within a month.

Cllr Jenny Kent, Executive Member for Environment and Climate Emergency, City of York Council said:

"York shows what happens when a local Warm Homes scheme works. We allocated our entire budget with almost no advertising, and next year's waiting list will be full within weeks. Our team and contractors can deliver far more than the funding allows. If the Chancellor allocates the rest of the Warm Homes Plan at the Budget, we can deliver comfortable homes and energy security for more of our residents."

Christopher Hammond, chief executive of UK100, said:

“People trust the people and organisations closest to them to get on with the job. That is exactly the direction the Energy Secretary set out at the Labour conference, and it is the right one.

“But you cannot devolve good intentions and an empty pot. The public rightly puts the responsibility for coughing up squarely at the door of the Treasury. From York to Lewisham, local leaders are turning families away because demand for warm, comfortable homes has outstripped the money available. Councils asked for £1.7 billion and got £500 million. Every scheme that closes to new applicants is proof that local delivery works, that demand is there, and that it is underfunded.

“It doesn’t have to be that way. Energy security this winter begins in our homes. The Budget can be where the government makes good on its promises. We’re calling on Ministers to allocate the rest of the Warm Homes Plan investment, ensure the money reaches every postcode and back every pound of capital with the staff and skills to get it to the homes that need it most.”

Adam Corner, Strategy Lead, Climate Barometer, said:

“Climate impacts are no longer abstract. After the summer we just sweltered through, three in four Britons have now experienced extreme heat. And our latest polling shows who people trust to lead the response where they live: their local council (and this includes Reform and Conservative voters). People want to see action in their area and they’re looking to local leaders to deliver it.”

Cllr Douglas Johnson, chair of the housing policy committee at Sheffield City Council, where more than 26,000 homes are in fuel poverty and current funding will upgrade around 1,000 by 2028, said:

“Demand for our Warm Homes scheme is already high enough that we need to ration by strict need criteria. If the Chancellor commits the rest of the Warm Homes funding at the Budget, we can start delivering more comfortable homes this winter rather than telling families they need to wait.”

A spokesperson for Lewisham Council said:

“The queue behind those 800 homes is long. What we need from the Budget is certainty that the rest of the Warm Homes money will flow to local communities, and the flexibility to deliver a truly multi-year programme so the teams and supply chains we have built can keep working to provide comfortable homes year-round.”

What UK100 is asking for at the Budget

• Commit to fully funding the Warm Homes Plan. Including allocating the remaining £3 billion of the Plan’s low-income budget to strategic and local government and social housing delivery partners, as the Renew Our Neighbourhoods coalition, which UK100 has joined, has asked.
• Reach every postcode. A quarter of England lives outside a mayoral strategic authority. Devolved Warm Homes funding should be area-based, non-competitive and multi-year, with continuity guaranteed through local government reorganisation and the devolution white paper saying which spending devolves, to whom and from when.
• Fund the people as well as the fabric. Pair capital with capability funding, as the Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure programme did: £65 million of capability funding alongside £340 million of capital took council EV officer roles from around 80 to 400. Councils cannot build a retrofit team on a one-year grant.

ENDS

More information: Liam Ward, UK100, media@uk100.org

Christopher Hammond is available for interview, and UK100 can put journalists in touch with local leaders in Sheffield, Lewisham, Cambridge, York and East Sussex.

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Notes to editors

About the polling

Climate Barometer polling, conducted by Savanta among 2,017 UK adults between 4 August and 3 September 2026, with a question co-designed by UK100. Respondents were asked: “When it comes to tackling climate change in your local area (e.g. improving homes, protecting green spaces, or shifting to clean energy), who do you most trust to lead that work? Please select up to two options.” Results: my local council 31%; national public bodies, e.g. Environment Agency, National Grid 30%; the national government 28%; community and voluntary organisations 16%; a committee of local residents 14%; elected local leaders on my council 12%; local businesses 7%; none of these 11%; don’t know 8%. Among those who voted Reform UK at the 2024 general election: my local council 29%; the national government 24%. Among those who voted Conservative in 2024: my local council 33%; the national government 28%. Respondents were also asked who has the biggest responsibility for preventing harm from climate impacts such as flooding, overheating, drought and infrastructure disruption (up to three options): national government 44%; utility and infrastructure companies 22%; local councils and local authorities 19%. Asked who should pay for most of the costs associated with climate impacts in the UK (up to three options): national government and arm’s-length bodies 41%; local government 28%. Climate Barometer is the UK’s only matched tracker of public and MP opinion on climate, the environment and nature. Wave 9 questions and data requests: climatebarometer.org/wave-9-public-survey-explorer.

About the funding figures

Councils bid for £1.7 billion of Warm Homes: Local Grant funding at the end of 2024 and have been granted £500 million to 2028 (i Paper, 20 September 2026). The Warm Homes Plan, published in January 2026, commits £15 billion to 2030 and promised £4.4 billion in grants over this Parliament, of which £500 million has been made available so far. The Centre for Sustainable Energy estimates the retrofit sector faces a shortfall of around £1.3 billion a year until the Plan begins delivery (CSE, 18 September 2026).

UK100’s three tests

UK100’s three tests for the devolved Warm Homes Plan, set out on 29 September: protect the funding at the Budget, reach every postcode, and invest in the people who deliver it (UK100 response to the Energy Secretary’s speech). UK100’s evidence to the Energy Security and Net Zero Committee’s warm and comfortable homes inquiry is here.

About UK100

UK100 is the only network of ambitious strategic and local authorities led by all political parties working together to tackle climate change. We help local leaders overcome challenges and turn innovation into solutions that work everywhere. We build the case for the powers needed to make change happen. From cities to villages, we help communities across the UK create thriving places powered by clean energy, with fresh air to breathe, warm homes to live in, and a healthy natural environment. UK100.org