Section 15(1) of the Social Security Act 1990 (as amended by Section 142 of the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996) provides that the Secretary of State may make or arrange for the making of grants towards the cost of work or advice to improve thermal insulation or otherwise to reduce or prevent energy wastage in dwellings.

The Secretary of State’s power under this section is now exercisable by the Assembly in relation to Wales by virtue of the National Assembly for Wales (Transfer of Functions) Order 1999.

These Regulations set out the schemes for providing grants for the purposes set out in Section 15(1) of the 1990 Act (as amended). The Regulations deal with who is eligible to receive a grant, determination by the Assembly of the categories of works and the maximum levels of grants available, the purposes for which grants may be approved and the method of applying for a grant.

NB The Home Energy Efficiency Scheme (Amendment)(Wales) Regulations 2000 (“the 2000 (Amendment) Regulations”) provided new maxima for an award of a grant under the former Scheme, which was set out in the Home Energy Efficiency Scheme Regulations 1997 (“the 1997 Regulations”). Both the 1997 Regulations and the 2000 (Amendment) Regulations are revoked as set out in these Regulations.