Green Mortgage Schemes: How UK Banks Can Help Fund Your Solar Panels, Heat Pump or Home Insulation

Nationwide Building Society – 0% Green Additional Borrowing

Nationwide’s scheme is the market leader for homeowners seeking interest-free finance. Existing mortgage customers can borrow between £5,000 and £20,000 at 0% fixed interest for either two or five years, with no product fees. The maximum loan-to-value ratio is 90%.

The key condition is that 100% of the borrowed amount must be spent on eligible energy-efficiency improvements. These include solar panels, battery storage, air source heat pumps, boiler upgrades, cavity wall insulation, double glazing or replacement windows, loft insulation, and electric vehicle charging points.

After the fixed-rate period ends, any outstanding balance moves onto Nationwide’s Standard Mortgage Rate – so the incentive is to repay within the interest-free window where possible.

Nationwide originally launched this product in June 2023 with a target of supporting 5,000 households. In March 2026, it announced that it was doubling this commitment to 10,000 households, having already lent around £60 million with an average loan size of approximately £13,000. Solar panels and insulation have been the most popular improvements funded through the scheme.

To be eligible, you must be an existing Nationwide mortgage customer with at least one monthly payment made. There is a limit of one Green Additional Borrowing mortgage per property.

Skipton Building Society – Green Additional Borrowing

Skipton offers the highest borrowing ceiling in this category, with loans available between £5,000 and £50,000. Products are available for both residential and buy-to-let customers, with residential products available up to 95% LTV on a repayment basis and up to 70% for interest-only mortgages.

At least 50% of the loan must be spent on energy-efficient improvements – such as solar panels, insulation, heat pumps, biomass boilers, and new windows and doors – with the remaining 50% available for other home improvements. This is more flexible than Nationwide’s 100% requirement and may suit homeowners planning a broader renovation that includes green measures.

Skipton also provides a distinctive additional benefit: eligible members can arrange a free EPC Plus report from Vibrant (part of the Skipton Group), which assesses the property and recommends the most suitable energy-efficiency improvements. This can be a helpful starting point before deciding what work to carry out.

Green Additional Borrowing products from Skipton have no early repayment charges on variable rate products, and existing customers must have made at least six consecutive mortgage payments to be eligible.

Coventry Building Society – Green Additional Borrowing

Coventry Building Society offers green additional borrowing with a maximum loan of £25,000, available for both residential and buy-to-let customers. The product carries a lower interest rate than Coventry’s standard additional borrowing range and has no product fee.

Like Skipton, at least 50% of the borrowed funds must be used for energy-efficiency improvements. Eligible works include insulation, window and door improvements, energy generation installations such as solar PV panels and wind turbines, and heating upgrades such as air source heat pumps and biomass boilers. The remaining 50% can be spent on other general home improvements.

To be eligible, applicants must have an existing residential or buy-to-let mortgage with Coventry Building Society (or its subsidiaries Godiva Mortgages or ITL Mortgages) and must have made at least six consecutive monthly payments. A quote for the proposed work is required as part of the application.

Leeds Building Society – Green Additional Borrowing

Leeds Building Society launched its green additional borrowing product in November 2025. Residential products include a two-year fixed rate at 4.19% up to 75% LTV and a two-year fixed rate at 4.69% up to 90% LTV. A buy-to-let two-year fixed rate is also available at 5.19% up to 75% LTV. All products come with no product fee and a free standard valuation.

The loan must primarily (more than 50%) be used for energy-efficient home improvements, including solar panels, insulation, air source heat pumps, double or triple glazing, boiler upgrades, and EV charging points. The product is available to existing residential, buy-to-let, and shared ownership mortgage holders.

Leeds Building Society also offers a Home Energy Saving Tool, provided by the Energy Saving Trust, which generates a tailored plan of recommended improvements and potential savings for your property.

Co-operative Bank – Energy Efficient Additional Borrowing

The Co-operative Bank offers energy efficient additional borrowing to existing Britannia or Co-operative Bank mortgage holders. Based on the most recent product guide (dated 10 March 2026), two-year fixed rates are available at 4.10% up to 60% LTV and 4.39% up to 85% LTV, while five-year fixed rates are 4.10% at 60% LTV and 4.72% at 85% LTV. There are no product fees, and the minimum loan is £5,000.

At least 50% of the borrowing must go towards green home improvements such as solar panels, heat pumps, insulated windows and doors, boiler upgrades, solid floor insulation, EV charging points, and loft insulation.

The distinctive feature of the Co-operative Bank’s scheme is the application process. Customers must first complete an Energy Saving Improvement Tool – an online assessment powered by the Energy Saving Trust – which generates a personalised Improvement Plan based on the property and the customer’s budget. This report must be provided as part of the application, helping to ensure the proposed works are appropriate for the property.

Customers must have held their mortgage for at least six months before applying.

Barclays – Greener Home Reward

Barclays offers its Greener Home Reward to existing residential mortgage customers, providing up to £1,000 in cashback for eligible improvements. The reward amount depends on the type of work completed, and all improvements must be carried out by an MCS-certified installer.

No additional borrowing from Barclays is required to qualify. It is worth noting that this scheme was updated in January 2026 – the previous version offered up to £2,000 – so the current terms represent a reduction in the maximum reward.

Halifax – Green Living Reward

Halifax offers tiered cashback rewards: up to £2,000 for heat pump installations, up to £1,000 for solar panels or battery storage, and up to £500 for other energy-efficiency improvements. The scheme is available to Halifax residential mortgage customers who received a mortgage illustration after 31 July 2024, whether for a purchase, remortgage, product transfer, or further advance.

Lloyds Bank – Eco Home Reward

Lloyds Bank’s Eco Home Reward mirrors the Halifax scheme closely – unsurprisingly, as both are part of the Lloyds Banking Group. It provides up to £2,000 for heat pumps, up to £1,000 for solar or battery systems, and up to £500 for other upgrades. Eligibility requires a mortgage illustration received after 31 July 2024, and a Club Lloyds current account must be held at the time of the claim.

Santander – Home Energy Cashback

Santander has offered up to £500 in cashback for existing mortgage or current account customers who take out an additional loan to fund energy-efficiency improvements – £250 for borrowing between £5,000 and £9,999, and £500 for £10,000 or more. However, the most recent iteration of this scheme required all work to be completed by 30 September 2025, so homeowners should check directly with Santander whether a new version has launched.

Schemes That Have Closed

Virgin Money’s Green Reward scheme permanently closed to new registrations on 30 June 2025. Nationwide also previously offered a separate Green Reward cashback scheme (distinct from its 0% additional borrowing product) providing up to £1,000 cashback for purchasing energy-efficient homes, which ran alongside its borrowing scheme.

These closures illustrate how quickly the green mortgage market moves. Schemes can be withdrawn at short notice once internal budgets are met, so it is worth acting promptly if your lender currently offers a product that suits your plans.

Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan

The Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan Scheme, funded by the Scottish Government, provides homeowners with grants, interest-free loans, or a combination of both to install clean heating systems and energy-efficiency measures.

For heating systems such as heat pumps, grant funding of up to £7,500 is available. If the total cost exceeds this, an additional £7,500 can be taken as an optional interest-free loan. For energy-efficiency measures such as insulation, grant funding covers up to 75% of the combined cost to a maximum of £7,500, with the balance available as an interest-free loan.

An uplift of £1,500 is available for rural and island homes on both the heating and efficiency grants, meaning rural households can claim up to £18,000 in total grant funding.

There is no interest to pay on the loan element. A small administration fee of 1.5% of the loan value is charged, capped at a maximum of £150 and included within the monthly repayments. The loan can be repaid at any time with no penalties.

Installers must be MCS-certified for renewable systems. The first step is to contact Home Energy Scotland on 0808 808 2282 for a free advice session, which will assess eligibility and recommend suitable measures.

HEEPS Equity Loan – Now Closed

The HEEPS (Home Energy Efficiency Programmes for Scotland) Equity Loan was a pilot scheme that ran between 2017 and 2022, providing interest-free equity loans of up to £40,000 to homeowners on low incomes for energy-efficiency improvements and essential repairs. The loan was repaid when the property was sold.

This scheme is now closed to new customers. Existing loan holders continue to be managed by the Energy Saving Trust, but no new applications are accepted. Some online sources still list it as a current option, but this is no longer accurate.