The grant money: £1 billion out, councils mostly protected
The line that matters most for anyone hoping a grant will pay for windows is a short one in the Budget document. The energy department is moving money towards the Defence Investment Plan, and "the government will also save £1 billion capital grant from the Warm Homes Plan". The same paragraph says "the majority of WHP funding for low-income households and social housing, delivered by mayors and councils, is protected."
What the Budget does not do is say which schemes the £1 billion comes from. "Majority" is not "all", so it is too early to say the council-run Warm Homes: Local Grant is safe, and too early to say it is shrinking. In practice the bigger problem was already there before the Budget: councils have been running out of this year's money, and West Northamptonshire became the latest on 14 October, as our report on councils closing the Warm Homes Local Grant sets out.
Two other money lines sit next to it. The heat pump grant, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, is held at £400 million in 2027-28, rising broadly with inflation. And some money from the Warm Homes Fund, the plan's loans and investment pot, is being reallocated to help pay for a new first-time buyer scheme. Neither pays for windows.
VAT on windows: still 20%
Every Budget brings a fresh round of claims that double glazing is now VAT free. It is not, and this Budget did not change it. HMRC's VAT Notice 708/6 is explicit that "secondary or double glazing, low-emissivity glass" are standard-rated. The relief people confuse it with is the temporary zero rate on energy-saving materials, which covers insulation, heat pumps, solar panels and batteries. That zero rate runs until 31 March 2027, and from 1 April 2027 it returns to 5%, exactly as already legislated.
| What is installed | VAT now | From 1 April 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Double or secondary glazing | 20% | 20%, unchanged |
| Draught stripping around windows | 0% | 5% |
| Insulation, heat pumps, solar, batteries | 0% | 5% |
Draught stripping counts as an energy-saving material, so it is zero-rated until 31 March 2027 even when it is fitted alongside windows. The glazing itself is not.
One practical consequence: if an installer is fitting new windows and also offering draught proofing elsewhere in the house, the two lines should carry different VAT on the quote. Our guide to fixing draughty windows covers when draught stripping is enough on its own, and our secondary glazing cost guide prices that route with the 20% included.
The Warm Homes Loan opened, and it still skips windows
The day before the Budget, the government published a factsheet for the Warm Homes Loan Scheme, now lending across the whole UK through ten lenders, including Tandem Bank, The Money Co-op, Hometree Finance and HomeServe with E.On. It promises an "up-to-5 per cent reduction" in interest compared with ordinary loans and up to 30 years to repay in some cases. The Budget cites it as part of its support for heat pumps and changes nothing about it.
The list of what it will lend for is the same as in the scheme rules: solar panels and batteries up to £15,000 each, an air-to-water heat pump up to £20,000, a ground source heat pump up to £35,000, and a few other low-carbon measures. Windows are not on it. The rules name "insulation, windows and doors" among the costs not covered, and say a lender may offer a separate product, "for example, a standard unsecured personal loan". That is ordinary credit at an ordinary rate, which our guide to double glazing finance explains. The one public loan we know of that does name glazing is regional: the North East Warm Homes Loan, at 2% fixed across seven council areas.
Energy bills: the parts that touch what windows save
The rest of the energy package is about bills rather than upgrades, but one piece has a slow-burning link to glazing. Gas standing charges average £108 a year, according to the Budget, and are paid even if you use very little gas. Government has asked Ofgem to abolish them on household bills, "aiming for delivery by the end of 2027 or as soon as possible after then", with suppliers recovering the cost through the gas unit rate instead.
That matters because a standing charge is the one part of a gas bill that better windows cannot touch. Move it onto each unit and every unit of gas a window saves is worth a little more. Government says the typical household on median gas use will benefit, and that heavy gas users, often in larger or less efficient homes, may pay more, with targeted help to follow. No new rates exist yet, so this changes nothing on today's bills, and our energy savings calculator still uses current prices.
| Measure | Who | When |
|---|---|---|
| £100 Household Energy Payment | Council tax bands A to D, England | From January 2027 |
| 0% VAT on electricity extended | Great Britain; Northern Ireland expected from April 2027 | To July 2027 |
| Gas standing charge abolished | Household gas bills, Great Britain | End of 2027 or soon after |
| Electricity standing charge reform | Household bills | Details due in 2027 |
The VAT extension is expected to take around £50 off the annual Ofgem price cap in April 2027. Councils in England also get £100 million for targeted help, including for some households in higher bands.
The electricity VAT cut, which we covered when VAT came off electricity bills in October, now runs three months longer. As we said then, most homes heat with gas, so it barely moves what new windows save.
Nothing in this Budget makes a window job cheaper this winter. The VAT is the same, the new loan does not cover glazing, and the grant pot just got smaller. If you were waiting for the Budget before getting quotes, there is no reason to wait any longer.
Double Glazing Cost Calculator Team
What to do now
- Check whether you qualify for help before paying privately. Our grant eligibility checker takes about a minute, and the double glazing grants guide covers every scheme across the four nations, including ECO4, which ends on 31 December 2026.
- Price the job. The uPVC window cost calculator gives a fitted range including 20% VAT, so you can tell a fair quote from a padded one.
- Compare written quotes. You can request quotes from local installers and check each one states VAT separately.
The wider programme is covered in our piece on the Warm Homes Plan 2026, and the rest of our double glazing news tracks what changes next, starting with the January price cap, due on 25 November.
Sources: HM Treasury, Budget 2026, 28 October 2026; Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, "What the Autumn Budget 2026 means for your energy bills", 28 October 2026, and "Warm Homes Loan Scheme: Factsheet", 27 October 2026; Warm Homes Loan Scheme: Scheme Rules (September 2026), paragraph 4.20; HMRC VAT Notice 708/6, energy-saving materials and heating equipment. All read on 29 October 2026.
Frequently asked questions
No. New windows stay at the standard 20% rate. HMRC's VAT Notice 708/6 lists secondary or double glazing and low-emissivity glass as standard-rated, and the Budget did not change that. The temporary 0% rate on energy-saving materials such as insulation and heat pumps ends on 31 March 2027 as planned, and returns to 5% from 1 April 2027. Windows were never part of it.
The Budget takes £1 billion of capital grant out of the Warm Homes Plan, but says the majority of funding for low-income households and social housing, delivered by mayors and councils, is protected. It does not say which schemes lose money. No council has announced a cut because of it so far, and several had already run out of money for 2026/27 before the Budget.
No. The Warm Homes Loan Scheme opened on 27 October 2026 with ten lenders, but it finances heat pumps, solar panels, batteries and a few other low-carbon measures only. Its scheme rules name insulation, windows and doors as costs it does not cover, and say a lender may offer a separate loan, such as a standard unsecured personal loan, for those.
Households in England in council tax bands A to D, up to 20 million homes, from January 2027. If you pay council tax by Direct Debit it is paid into your bank account automatically; otherwise your council will invite you to apply. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland get funding to provide similar support. Government warns that nobody other than your council should contact you about it.
Government has asked Ofgem to abolish them on household bills in Great Britain, aiming for the end of 2027 or as soon as possible after then. They average £108 a year today. The cost moves onto the price of each unit of gas instead, so households that use less gas than average gain and heavy users pay more.
Slightly, in principle, and not yet. A standing charge is paid whatever you use, so cutting your gas use does not reduce it. Once that cost moves onto each unit, every unit of gas a better window saves is worth a little more. Nothing changes until Ofgem sets new rates, so do not let anyone price that future change into a quote today.
The Budget extends it by three months, to July 2027, and expects that to take around £50 off the annual Ofgem price cap in April 2027. It covers electricity only, not gas. Northern Ireland, left out of the first round, is now expected to get the relief from April 2027.