People at risk of fuel poverty in West Dunbartonshire will benefit from further investment to make their homes warmer and more energy efficient.

The Warmer Homes Scotland initiative has awarded a minimum of £38 million to managing agent Warmworks to continue to deliver the government’s fuel poverty scheme across Scotland over the next two years.

People at risk of fuel poverty are eligible through the scheme to have improvements made to their property, such as new heating systems and insulation.

Since the launch of Warmworks, thousands of people across Scotland have been helped to become warmer in their homes, with households saving an average of over £300 per year on their energy bills.

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Housing minister Kevin Stewart said the extension of the Warmer Homes Scotland to 2022 demonstrates the Scottish Government’s commitment to eradicating fuel poverty and increasing energy efficiency.

After meeting the 15,000th Warmer Homes Scotland customer, Mr Stewart said: “I welcome the contract extension with Warmworks to continue our work to eradicate fuel poverty.

“This funding will have a huge impact for people seeking to make essential improvements to the energy efficiency of their home.

“We have taken a world leading approach to tackling fuel poverty with the introduction of the Fuel Poverty Bill and setting an ambitious target that, by 2040, no more than five per cent of Scottish households are in fuel poverty.

“I’m delighted to see for myself the excellent work being done in homes across Scotland, making them warmer and more affordable to heat.”

The Warmer Homes Scotland scheme was launched in September 2015.