Phase 3c Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme

The Application Portal will open on Tuesday 7 November, at 2pm, and will close on Friday 10 November at 2pm. The portal will be accessible through the Phase 3c webpage, your organisations’ Salix account or a Google search. We recommend that all applicants create a Salix account prior to the portal opening and ensure all the login details are correct and working. If you have any issues with your account, please contact [email protected].

Yes – all applicants need to reapply when the portal reopens on Tuesday 7 November. All applications that have been previously submitted via the portal or email will be discarded, and will not be considered for funding.

The technical issues with the portal on 10 October meant that Salix was not able to fairly apply the first come first serve policy to determine the order in which applications were submitted.  Therefore, in consultation with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero it was decided the only fair approach is to close the application process, disregard applications received, and re-run the portal.

The criteria for the rerun will be the same as before. Please consult the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme Phase 3c Guidance Notes to ensure that your application complies with the eligibility criteria. On the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme Phase 3c website, we have provided all necessary information to ensure that applicants understand the requirements to build a complete application. If you have any questions regarding the eligibility of your project, please contact [email protected]

We will be accepting applications under the same criteria as initially expected for Phase 3c. As such, you are free to submit the same Application Form and supporting documentation, or, if you wish, you can also take the time between now and portal opening to further develop your application.

We do not expect there to be any delays in the assessment process or the awarding of grant funding. Therefore, the start and end date of the grant (1 April 2024 – 31 March 2026) will remain the same.

The majority of the Application Portal remains unchanged; however, Salix has made some minor changes to the way you upload you supporting documentation.

For the Application Portal which re-opens on Tuesday 7 November, you will be asked to upload your supporting documentation files one at a time, six of these supporting document fields are mandatory. You will be unable to upload a further file until the current file is fully uploaded. This will be illustrated by a progression bar.

The six mandatory fields for supporting documentation are:

1. Application Form.  (xls or xlsx only).
2. Cost Evidence (breakdown and quotation/invoices, CAPEX) (gif, jpeg, jpg, png, txt, rtf, doc, docx, ppt, pptx, xls, xlsx, xml or zip file only)
3. Energy Saving Calculations (xls, xlsx, pdf or zip only)
4. End of Life Heating System Evidence (gif, jpeg, jpg, png, txt, rtf, doc, docx, ppt, pptx, xls, xlsx, xml or zip file only)
5. Project Programme (gif, jpeg, jpg, png, txt, rtf, doc, docx, ppt, pptx, xls, xlsx, xml or zip file only)
6. Detailed Risk Register (gif, jpeg, jpg, png, txt, rtf, doc, docx, ppt, pptx, xls, xlsx, xml or zip file only)

Please note you can only upload one file for each of these six mandatory supporting document fields, each file can be up to 100Mb. Ensure you have uploaded the correct file in the required area. If you include zip files, please ensure that each file only includes the evidence that is requested for that specific area.

You will also have a chance to upload a further three optional supporting document files. These are not mandatory. These are shown under ‘other supporting documents.’ These are:

1. Schematics
2. Feasibility Study
3. Building Energy Figures

Applicants may wish to add other supporting information under this section of ‘supporting documents.’ All optional files can also be up to 100Mb.

If you would like to get a better understanding of the Portal Questions, please download the information page on the Phase 3c webpage found under Key Downloads section.

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has allocated up to £230m in funding for Phase 3c of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme for financial year 2024/25. The details of the budget available in FY25/26 will be confirmed in the autumn but applicants should assume a broadly balanced profile across years 1 and 2.

There is no limit to the size of grant value that a public sector organisation can apply for. Organisations are also allowed to make multiple submissions for grant funding, provided these are for different buildings and are not duplicate submissions. 

The login and password will be the same as when the applicant first applied. Once logged in, applicants will be able to view their application history through “My Salix”.

A list of projects awarded funding through the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, and short summaries of these projects, can be found on the scheme’s gov.uk page.

 A full list of successful Phase 3c Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme grant recipients will also be published in due course.

We encourage clients who have previously used Salix funding delivered from the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme or the Low Carbon Skills Fund to continue applying. We request that any relevant information on this is disclosed to Salix relationship managers, so we can understand how this can affect the delivery of the proposed projects. 

No, applications must be submitted by the public body itself. 

The Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme is only applicable to public sector bodies in England. If the public sector body is based in England but has sites in Scotland or Wales grant would be eligible to support works on these sites. Please see section 4.1 of the Guidance Notes for full eligibility criteria. Please check the Salix website for updates on funding schemes available for Wales and Scotland.

Yes, enabling costs such as Distribution Network Operator upgrades can be included in your Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme grant application.

Applicants should include building fabric improvements and energy efficiency measures where they reduce the heat or electrical demand of the building being heated by the proposed low carbon heating system. These measures will be capped at 58% of the total grant value. Examples of such measures include but are not limited to insulation, double glazing, LED lighting and solar panels.

Projects can receive other sources of grant funding, if these are not used to fund the same measures the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme funding is looking to support. The project must comply with the additionality criteria as listed in the Guidance Notes, section 4.4. You will be asked to provide more detail about these funding sources in the Application Form.

Applicants will be required to declare any economic activity within their application, including its value within the total project award, see the Subsidy Control Act 2022. If, in respect of any economic activity, your organisation has received less than 325,000 Special Drawing Rights over a period of three fiscal years, the grant would not be subject to these subsidy control rules.  Please also see section 2.1 of the Guidance Notes.

The £325 CCT represents the maximum value the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme can cover. The applicant's contribution is a minimum of 12% however the applicant is free to contribute more to ensure the grant value remains within the £325 carbon cost threshold.  

The Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme is eligible exclusively for public organisations. More information on public sector organisations can be found on the government's website.  Public Sector organisations are eligible if other private funding options have been exhausted and/or are not suitable for Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme project(s); and if in Salix’s reasonable opinion, the project would not take place without the grant. Public Corporations and private sector organisations are not eligible.  Registered charities are also not eligible, unless they are also non-departmental public bodies as defined by the Cabinet Office.

The Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme cannot fund social housing projects, with the exception of student accommodation and NHS accommodation.  

GPs are not eligible unless they are contracting authorities of an eligible body (including NHS trusts) that either own or have a long-term lease agreement with responsibility for maintenance of the buildings, not including NHS property services as these are semi-private. 

Public sector applicants must either own the building that the funding is being used to upgrade the heating systems or have a long-term lease arrangement where the tenancy agreement places the responsibility for operation and maintenance of the building services on the public sector body. Please note that it is not required that the public sector applicant pay the energy bills. Details of the lease agreement and its effect on the delivery of the proposed project must be provided in the Application Form.  

This is dependent on the scope of the contract held with the Public Funding Initiative. The Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme grant is unable to cover any works that fall under the Public Funding Initiative’s responsibility for operation or maintenance of the building (as this would not satisfy the additionality criteria for the scheme). Any works that would be outside the scope of the Public Funding Initiative contract can be funded through the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, provided that the school is a contracting authority as defined in the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (see section 4.1 of the Guidance Notes) and they either own the building(s) being treated or have responsibility for their operation and maintenance.

For example, if the upgrading of the heating system (from boiler to heat pump) is not covered by your Public Funding Initiative contract then this could be covered by a Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme grant. Please note evidence of this contract and approach will be required in the Application Form and supporting information. Salix may also ask for more information on your Public Funding Initiative contract while assessing your application.

Yes, parish councils meet the eligibility criteria provided they, own the site.  

Applicants may amend their application after submission however this will be treated as a new application. If a new application is submitted, it will be given a new ranking behind other submissions waiting to pass the initial quality checks.

Applications that cover multiple sectors will be classed under the ‘other’ category. 

To ensure fairness and objectivity, applications will be successful on a first come first serve basis, in line with all previous Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme phases. Applications should also be completed to a good standard and applicants must provide all the documents and evidence required. To learn more about the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme process please see the Applicant Journey.

Yes, a public sector body can apply on behalf of several public sector bodies. This could be a local authority, diocese or multi-academy trust applying for works on several schools within their remit. Alternatively, a consortium bid can also be made where a lead applicant applies on behalf of several separate public sector bodies. In this case the ‘Consortium Documentation’ tab of the Application Form must be completed.

This should be agreed within the consortium, but only one application should be made. Lead applicants for consortium applications are required to complete the Consortium Documentation tab of the Application Form as part of their Phase 3c Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme application.

Applications from consortia are eligible to apply for Phase 3c of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme if all members of the consortium comply with the organisation and building eligibility criteria. If successful, consortium grant recipients will need to fill in schedule 8 of the Grant Offer Letter, ‘Requirements for The Consortium’. 

Yes, this would be allowed, however, we would advise you include in your application the contracts detailing how you are fully owned by the public sector body so we can confirm any questions we may have regarding governance and eligibility. The Authorising Official must be from the public body itself.  

If you do not have the UPRN for your buildings readily available, please use the following link: UPRN search, address & postcode finder - FindMyAddress

You can find your building’s MPRN on your gas or dual fuel bill. It’s usually marked ‘Meter Point Reference Number’ and is between six and 10 digits long. An example of an MPRN is: 1875258102.

Alternatively, the Meter Point Administration Service’s online tool Find My Supplier can be used to find your building’s MPRN.

You can find your building’s MPAN on your electricity or dual fuel bill. It’s usually in a box marked ‘Supply Number’ and is 21 digits long and begins with ‘S’. Please note, you’ll only need the last 12 or 13 digits. The MPAN will often be printed in two rows, with the bottom row being the main number you’ll need.

An example of an MPAN is: S 01 801 101 22 6130 5588 165.

Alternatively, please contact your electricity supplier directly to find your building’s MPAN.

All Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme Phase 3c applications must include the replacement of end-of-life fossil fuel heating systems withs low-carbon heating solutions. An application with only energy efficiency measures would not be eligible.

Yes, if this are within the end-of-life criteria and are being replaced by a low carbon solution, hot water systems are eligible for replacement.

The Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme defines an end-of-life heating plant as over 10 years old. In the application Salix requires evidence it's at least 10 years old, ideally with pictures of the name plate showing the serial number and date of installation. Further information can be found in section 4.12 of the Guidance Notes.

No, spend to be claimed against the grant must be evidenced to the respective year it is spent, so costs incurred in February 2024 would not be able to be claimed from a 2024/25 grant allocation. These costs could be covered by the agreed applicant contribution.