Around half of ECO4 delivery flows through LA Flex — councils declaring households eligible under published local criteria. If you’re low-income or health-vulnerable but not on benefits, this is your route.
Participating local authorities publish a Statement of Intent setting out who they will declare eligible for ECO4 in their area. Installers and suppliers then use those declarations as the eligibility evidence instead of benefits receipt. The council doesn’t fund the work — the energy supplier obligation does — the council simply verifies you meet its published criteria.
Route 1: household income below the council’s threshold (commonly around £31,000). Route 2: proxy indicators of low income combined with an inefficient home — e.g. council tax reduction, free school meals eligibility, living in a defined deprived area. Route 3: health conditions made worse by a cold home — respiratory, cardiovascular, immunosuppressed, limited mobility — usually evidenced by a GP or the council’s public health team. Route 4: bespoke referrals from the council’s fuel-poverty programmes.
Most — but not all — GB authorities publish Flex statements, and criteria genuinely differ between neighbouring councils. Because statements change and close at different times as budgets and scheme deadlines approach, always work from the council’s current published document. Enter your postcode in our checker and we’ll route you to the criteria that apply to your address.
Flex declarations only matter while ECO4 exists — and ECO4 closes 31 December 2026 with no successor obligation. Councils need processing time for declarations, and installers need lead time for surveys and installation. Realistically, Flex applications should be moving by early autumn 2026 to complete safely.
Facts checked 21 August 2026. We link to official sources and show when facts were last verified. If a scheme changes, we update the page.
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