The Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS), open to a range of public sector bodies, has opened up Phase 3b, with applications due in by 31 October. 

Applications are welcomed from:

• Local authorities
• Schools within the state education system (which includes maintained schools, academies, Multi-Academy Trusts and free schools)
• Nursery schools maintained by a local authority
• NHS Trusts and Foundation Trusts
• Central government departments and their arm’s length bodies
• Emergency services
• Institutions of further and higher education

Social housing providers are not eligible to apply to the PSDS, but applications for Wave 2 of the parallel Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund are also underway.  

Phase 3b of PSDS will allocate up to £635m of funding to fund heat decarbonisation and energy efficiency measures within the public estate, to be spent in financial years 2023/24 (up to £402m) and 2024/25 (£233m).  

Applicants should be thinking about subsidy control rules, public procurement and contracting routes, and will need to understand the liabilities and responsibilities they are committing to in the grant funding agreements if awarded funding. The timescales for delivery of the funded works are incredibly tight, and so getting to grips with the funding terms and the need for compliance with subsidy control and procurement rules as soon as possible is a must - as is identifying suitable routes to contract which enable successful delivery of the works within the tight timescales without compromising on quality.  

I would be interested in hearing about your experiences of bidding for PSDS funding and delivering the funded decarbonisation measures.  And likewise, let us know if we can help at all with your funding applications or delivery routes.