Course description

Want a warmer home without wasting money on the wrong jobs? This course shows UK homeowners how to understand their energy use, find where the heat escapes, and fix things in a sensible order: draught-proofing, insulation, heating controls, ventilation and, when the time is right, bigger changes such as solar panels or a heat pump. You'll learn what you can safely do yourself, what needs a registered professional, and how to check grants and quotes.

It's a full course, not a quick list of tips. There are 10 sections and 50 written lessons with clear checks and numbered steps you follow in your own home. You follow a fictional homeowner through a year of improvements to her 1930s semi in Doncaster, from her first meter readings to a new EPC rating and a five-year plan, with the mistakes she made along the way. Every section has a worksheet, model answers, a cheat sheet and practical tools.

What you'll learn

• Your energy use: reading bills and meters, turning gas readings into kWh, tracking each month and reading your EPC.
• Finding heat loss: a room-by-room survey, spotting damp risks, knowing your building and setting priorities.
• Draught-proofing: doors, windows, floors, chimneys and loft hatches, while keeping the ventilation your home needs.
• Insulation: topping up your loft safely, cavity and solid walls, floors, pipes and tanks.
• Heating: thermostats, timers, radiator valves, flow temperature and boiler servicing.
• Everyday savings: hot water, electricity, appliances and smart meters.
• Damp and ventilation: reducing condensation, extractor fans and dealing with mould safely.
• Bigger changes: windows, solar panels, batteries, heat pumps, grants, finding installers and avoiding scams.

The final project

You'll write a whole-house plan for your own home: what you've learned from your readings and survey, the jobs in a sensible order, a simple budget, the grants and professionals you'll need, and how you'll measure the difference. A plan template and a year comparison workbook are included.

Who this course is for

• Homeowners who want a warmer, cheaper-to-heat home and don't know where to start.
• Anyone planning work on an older house who wants to get the order right and talk confidently to tradespeople.
• Renters and landlords who want to understand EPCs, damp, ventilation and the simple changes that help.

How the course works

Read each lesson, then do the checks in your own home. No tools or experience are needed to start. The course gives general guidance for homes in the UK, not technical or financial advice for your property, and it always tells you when a job needs a Gas Safe engineer, an electrician or another qualified professional. Grants and rules change, so each lesson shows you where to check the current details. You keep lifetime access, so you can come back whenever you plan your next job.

What will I learn?

• Read your energy bills and meters, convert gas readings to kWh and track your use each month
• Survey your home room by room and turn what you find into a priority list
• Draught-proof doors, windows, floors and chimneys safely while keeping the ventilation your home needs
• Understand loft, cavity, solid wall and floor insulation and know which jobs need a professional
• Set thermostats, timers and radiator valves and understand flow temperature and boiler servicing
• Reduce condensation and deal with mould safely
• Weigh up windows, solar panels, batteries and heat pumps, and check grants on GOV.UK
• Compare quotes, choose registered installers, avoid scams and write a whole-house plan

Frequently asked questions