ECO4 Closes 31 December 2026 · Warm Homes Plan from 2027 | 7,000+ Installations
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💰Earn £100 Per ReferralBy Peter Davies, ECO4 Analyst
Reviewed
Yes — if you live in RG1–RG10 and either claim a qualifying benefit (Universal Credit, Pension Credit, PIP, ESA, Income Support, Working Tax Credit or Child Tax Credit) with an EPC of band D–G, or your gross household income is under £31,000 via Reading Borough Council's LA Flex route, you can apply for a 100% free ECO4 boiler replacement. Reading sits on the SGN Southern gas network (not Cadent) and the council routes LA Flex referrals through its Warm Homes Local Grant team.
Pillar guides: Free boiler upgrade · ECO4 eligibility · LA Flex grants
RG1–RG10
Postcode coverage
SGN
Gas Distribution Network
LA Flex active
Reading Borough Council
£0
Cost to qualifying households
There are two routes for Reading households. Pick whichever applies — you don't need both.
Per gov.uk's Energy Company Obligation page, you qualify if you receive any of:
No qualifying benefit? Reading Borough Council runs its own referral route through the LA Flex Statement of Intent.
Bottom line: If your address is in RG1–RG10, you claim a qualifying benefit or fall under Reading Borough Council's LA Flex criteria, and your EPC is D-G, the eligibility check is a 49-second form.
Reading is one of the densest Victorian towns in southern England. Its population grew from 21,500 in 1850 to over 72,000 by 1900 — driven by the Great Western Railway, Huntley & Palmers biscuits, and the Sutton Seeds nursery — and the housing stock reflects that boom. Caversham, Tilehurst, the Newtown / Battle / Katesgrove triangle, and the streets either side of London Road are wall-to-wall solid-brick Victorian and Edwardian terraces with suspended timber floors, party walls and (originally) single-glazed sash windows. Whitley and parts of west Reading layer 1950s council stock on top of that older terrace base, while Lower Earley and Calcot are 1980s/90s expansion to higher fabric standards. For ECO4 the strongest scoring measures in Reading are A-rated boiler replacements across the Victorian and Edwardian terraces — particularly where a non-condensing combi from the late 1990s is still on the wall — plus loft and cavity insulation top-ups where the rear extension is cavity-built.
Total dwellings
75,000
as of 2021 Census
Private sector
—
owner-occupied + rented
Social housing
—
registered providers
Bottom line: Reading's mix of pre-1919 and post-war stock is exactly the catchment ECO4 targets. The mandatory PAS 2035 retrofit assessment will confirm the SAP uplift for your specific address.
SGN is the Gas Distribution Network operator for Scotland and Southern England — that includes every RG1–RG10 postcode.
~10 m connection
£500–£800
50 m+ connection
£1,500–£2,500
If your property is already on the gas main — most Reading addresses are — there is nothing to pay. ECO4 funds the boiler, internal pipework, controls, meter installation, and safe removal of the old system.
SGN's indicative pricing toolBottom line: Almost every Reading address (RG1–RG10) is already on the SGN gas main, so the connection cost is £0. The rare off-main cases sit on the outer fringes and pay SGN separately for the new connection.
You may have seen the successor scheme called "ECO5" online — there is no ECO5. The government has abolished the Energy Company Obligation model and replaced it with the Warm Homes Plan — a £15 billion programme funded by public investment rather than levies on energy bills. ECO4 still runs until 31 December 2026, so Reading households should apply now while the scheme is open.
Low-income grants
£4.4 bn
Warm Homes Social Housing Fund + Local Grant
Boiler Upgrade Scheme
£7,500
per household, clean-heat grant
Delivery moves from Ofgem to a new Warm Homes Agency, with the Social Housing Fund and Local Grant consolidating into a single low-income capital scheme by 2027/28.
Sources: gov.uk — Warm Homes Plan (updated 18 March 2026); Ofgem response to the Warm Homes Plan.
Bottom line: ECO4 closes 31 December 2026. The Warm Homes Plan replaces it from 2027 — apply now while the current scheme is still open and the £4,000–£8,000 install value is fully funded.
Property
Pre-1919 mid-terrace, two-up two-down brick with rear extension, three-bed
Existing system
EPC band E — 1999 non-condensing combi at end of life, single-zone controls, no TRVs, original sash to the front
Measure installed
Old combi removed; new A-rated condensing combi sited in the kitchen; full radiator-circuit flush; new programmable controls and TRVs; loft topped up to 270mm; rear-extension cavity walls drilled and filled.
Outcome
EPC modelled uplift from band E to band C; first-winter heating-bill cut of roughly £600–£800. £0 paid by the household.
Time on site
Boiler swap and cavity-fill completed across two days on site.
Illustrative — based on typical RG1–RG10 installs, not a single named customer.
Bottom line: Typical Reading installs deliver a two-band EPC uplift in a single intervention at £0 to the qualifying household. Your individual case depends on the PAS 2035 assessment, but the RG1 Newtown pattern above is representative.
Total install value typically £4,000–£8,000.
Most Reading addresses are already on the gas main — nothing extra to pay.
Bottom line: If your ECO4 application is approved, the install is £0 — typical install value £4,000–£8,000. The only out-of-pocket case is a brand-new gas-main connection from off-grid, which is uncommon in Reading.
Run our wizard or call +44 7375 868046.
A free home survey by an accredited assessor confirms the right measure for your property.
Gas Safe install, building-control sign-off, lodged on the TrustMark Data Warehouse.
Installer chain verified via TrustMark and Ofgem ECO4 Delivery Guidance v4.0.
Bottom line: From the 49-second eligibility check to a commissioned boiler, a typical Reading ECO4 job runs five to seven weeks. The wizard above is the fastest start — or call +44 7375 868046.
Reading homeowners (EPC band D–G) and private tenants (EPC band E–G, with landlord consent) whose household either claims a qualifying benefit (Universal Credit, Pension Credit, PIP, ESA, Income Support, Working Tax Credit or Child Tax Credit) or has gross income under £31,000 via Reading Borough Council's LA Flex referral. A cold-sensitive health condition can substitute for the income test.
SGN Southern — Reading sits in SGN's Southern England network, the same GDN that covers Brighton, Portsmouth and Oxford. ECO4 covers the new boiler, internal pipework, meter installation and removal of the old system at no cost. The connection from your meter back to the SGN main is separate — for a standard run under 20m the service charge is around £893 plus VAT.
Yes. Reading Borough Council runs ECO4 Flex referrals via its Warm Homes Local Grant team and signposts to TrustMark-registered installers. The standard LA Flex route uses a £31,000 gross household income threshold or a cold-home vulnerability indicator.
Caversham and Newtown terraces typically combine a solid-brick front wall with a cavity rear extension. The strongest scoring package is an A-rated condensing combi replacement plus loft insulation top-up to 270mm, plus cavity-wall fill on the rear if uninsulated. Solid-wall insulation on the front is in scope but often requires consent within the Conservation Areas around the Abbey Quarter and Caversham.
Yes. Whitley has a large 1950s council and ex-council estate where many properties retained electric storage heaters or 1990s non-condensing combis — strong candidates for boiler-replacement and First-Time Central Heating measures. Tilehurst mixes turn-of-the-century cottages, Edwardian terraces and 1950s council stock; the older stock typically sits at EPC band D or worse and qualifies for the full ECO4 package.
No. Private tenants can apply provided the property is EPC band E–G (one notch stricter than the owner-occupier D–G rule) and the landlord consents in writing. Reading's private rented sector is concentrated in Caversham, Newtown and around the University, and the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard (MEES) policy backdrop means most landlords agree quickly — the upgrade improves their asset at no cost.
ECO4 closes 31 December 2026. After that, the £15 billion Warm Homes Plan takes over from April 2027 — funded by public investment rather than energy-bill levies, and delivered by the new Warm Homes Agency rather than Ofgem (gov.uk Warm Homes Plan, updated 18 March 2026). You may have seen the successor scheme called 'ECO5' online — that name is not used by government and no scheme by that title exists. For Reading households, the practical effect is straightforward: if you apply under ECO4 before the 31 December 2026 close, the install is funded under ECO4 even if the engineer's visit happens in early 2027; if you start a fresh application after 1 January 2027, you'll be routed through the Warm Homes Local Grant (WHLG), the Warm Homes Social Housing Fund, or the £7,500 Boiler Upgrade Scheme depending on your tenure and property. Your local council's energy team continues to handle the referral throughout the transition.
gov.uk — Energy Company Obligation (ECO4)
Qualifying benefits and EPC band rules
Ofgem — ECO4 Delivery Guidance v4.0 (March 2026)
Scheme closure 31 December 2026, measure rules
gov.uk — Warm Homes Plan
£15bn ECO4 successor scheme, updated 18 March 2026
Reading Borough Council — Energy Company Obligations (ECO4) page
last updated 2024-01-01
Reading Borough Council — ECO Flexible Eligibility Statement of Intent
LA Flex thresholds and vulnerability criteria
SGN — new gas connection page
GDN-side connection-cost guidance
ONS Census 2021 — Reading local-authority area (E06000038)
Dwelling counts for Reading (2021 Census)
Reading Borough Council Local Plan evidence base
Regional EPC band distribution
Page reviewed: .
49-second form. No commitment. No cost. RG1–RG10 households on Universal Credit, Pension Credit, PIP, ESA, JSA, Income Support, Housing Benefit or Child Benefit — start here. Apply under ECO4 now (closes 31 December 2026); the Warm Homes Plan (sometimes searched as "ECO5") replaces it from April 2027.
