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It is estimated that householder contribution to measures provided under the 2009-10 Home Insulation Scheme are a minimum of £420,000.

Home energy advisers had visited 72,453 properties at least once by 31 December 2009 and completed 19,285 home energy checks. Reports providing an overview of all Home Insulation Scheme activity are published monthly on the Energy Saving Trust website: http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk.

The Home Insulation Scheme is managed by the Energy Saving Trust from its Scottish office. While based in Scotland, as part of its policies on equal opportunities the Energy Saving Trust employs both Scottish workers and those of other nationalities.

The appointment of Home Insulation Scheme contractors were required to follow a competitive procurement process under EU law.

The £15 million budget for the Home Insulation Scheme was used to support a first phase of activity covering 95,000 houses in 10 local authority areas, together with a second phase of activity covering a further 85,000 houses in additional areas within those 10 local authority districts. Based on information provided by these local authorities, complementary investment of £76,593 was provided by local authorities for publicity and promotion of these schemes. This includes local authorities'' own estimates of the cash value of support that was provided in-kind.

The Home Insulation Scheme (HIS) achieved its target of ensuring that all dwellings in the identified areas were visited and free or discounted loft and cavity wall insulation measures and other services, where appropriate, offered to those households which it was possible to contact after three visits.

Our draft report on proposals and policies sets out a series of milestones for Scottish homes. This includes for every home to have loft and cavity wall insulation, which is cost-effective and technically feasible by 2020.

Installers under the HIS are contractually obliged to comply with British and European insulation standards and best practice guidelines.

Participating areas were announced on 6 October 2010. Details are as follows:

Local Authority	Properties	Area
Aberdeen City	8,700	Torry, Nigg and Cove
Aberdeenshire	5,590	Fraserburgh
Argyll and Bute	2,345	Milton and Ardenslate, Dunoon
Dundee	727	Watson Street, Wellgate, Crescent Lane, Hilltown West
East Ayrshire	5,500	Rural West Kilmarnock
East Dunbartonshire	3,000	Within East Dunbartonshire (to be targeted via thermal imaging)
East Lothian	6,100	Musselburgh
East Renfrewshire	1,789	Barrhead, Busby, Clarkston, Giffnock, Neilston, Thornliebank
Edinburgh	5,920	Tollcross
Eilean Siar	10,450	Lewis and Harris
Falkirk	3,000	Stenhousemuir, Larbert and Rural North Falkirk
Fife	24,000	Dunfermline
Glasgow	6,740	Dennistoun and Kelvindale
Highland	12,458	Badenoch & Strathspey, East Sutherland and Edderton and Skye
Inverclyde	2,000	Upper Port Glasgow
Midlothian	506	Pathhead
Moray	260	Forres
North Ayrshire	4,443	Stevenston
North Lanarkshire	564	Salsburgh
Renfrewshire	9,462	Paisley (south)
Orkney	25	Westray, Sanday, Stronsay, Eday, Rousay, Shapinsay, Hoy, Ronaldsay
Perth and Kinross	6,000	Highland Perthshire
Scottish Borders	5,967	Tweedale
South Ayrshire	4,963	Annbank, Coylton, Mossblown, Tarbolton, Dundonald, Loans and Symington
South Lanarkshire	4,240	Various “ based on specific property types
Stirling	2,431	Cultenhove, Cowie, Fallin, Raploch
West Dunbartonshire	2,145	Alexandria
Total	139,325

The number of participating properties is around 6% of the Scottish housing stock.

The breakdown is as follows :

(a) 10,581 households had at least one insulation measure installed that was fully paid for under the Home Insulation Scheme (HIS).

(b) 3,020 households had at least one insulation measure installed that was partly paid for under HIS.

These figures are based on delivery as at 5 December 2010, within HIS areas funded from 2009-10 budgets. A household may have had both a partly paid and a fully paid measure installed; if so, the household will be counted in both of the above figures.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-38532 on 25 January 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

Home Insulation Scheme Area	Successful Bidder
Glasgow/ South Lanarkshire	Solas
Edinburgh	EAGA/ Scottish Power
Stirling	EAGA/ Scottish Power
Fife	EAGA/ Scottish Power
Dundee	Miller Pattison
Angus	Miller Pattison
Highland 1	Miller Pattison
Highland 2	Miller Pattison
Western Isles	Miller Pattison
Orkney	Insta Group

 

All private sector households in Home Insulation Scheme (HIS) areas are eligible to receive free loft insulation top-ups. Households will be offered such insulation if their homes require it and are suitable to take this measure.

Eligibility for virgin loft and cavity wall insulation within HIS areas is determined by the UK Government''s Carbon Emissions Reductions Target (CERT) scheme. Under that scheme, households assessed as priority are generally eligible for free virgin loft and cavity wall insulation. Some households in larger properties may be asked to pay a charge for excess meterage. Households are priority under CERT if they are in receipt of certain benefits or over 70 years of age. Other households are assessed as able to pay and therefore eligible for measures at reduced cost. Households will be offered such insulation if their homes require it and are suitable to take this measure.

Based on analysis of activity in HIS areas supported under Scottish Government 2009-10 budgets, approximately 38% of households in those areas would be assessed as priority under CERT criteria, with the remaining 62% regarded as being able to pay. On a pro-rata basis, this would indicate that approximately 70,000 households in HIS areas would be assessed as a priority case under CERT, with the remaining 110,000 households being classed as able to pay for these measures.

These figures should be regarded as a rough estimate only as it is not known whether or not the profile of households that engaged and is reflected in this analysis is fully representative of the household profile in the area as a whole.