The contract, which has a maximum value of up to £728m over a potential seven-year period to 2030, will see the Edinburgh-based company manage the process of initial surveys, the installation of energy efficiency upgrades and independent quality inspections of eligible homes.

Warmworks also manages the delivery of the Scottish Government’s previous national programme, Warmer Homes Scotland which will be coming to an end in September. Through that scheme, more than 33,000 homes across all 32 local authorities in Scotland have already been helped to improve their energy efficiency and to better manage their energy costs.

The organisation has established a successful track record in the delivery of energy efficiency improvements, with contracts spanning across the UK - from Orkney to Newcastle and to the southeast of England - all targeted at helping people to stay affordably warm at home.

The delivery of the new national contract will begin from 2 October 2023, with further information to follow about how households can apply for support.

Patrick Harvie, minister for zero carbon buildings, said: “I am delighted that Warmworks will be continuing to deliver our national programme to improve the homes of people living in fuel poverty. This is a key part of our groundbreaking £1.8bn commitment to help transform the heating and energy efficiency performance of Scotland’s buildings.

“We are relaunching the Warmer Homes Scotland scheme from October with more funding and more help for households to install a climate-friendly heating system.

“The successor scheme will have a widened eligibility criteria which will allow a broader range of households to access help. The scheme will adopt new standards, delivering whole house retrofit and with a greater emphasis on zero direct emission heating, like heat pumps or electric heating, so households will be able to get more work done. Any applications made now will be eligible for help when the scheme starts.

“All our other schemes continue, including our Area Based Schemes which tackle fuel poverty at a neighbourhood level and our Home Energy Scotland grant scheme. The First Minister also recently announced the trebling of the Fuel Insecurity Fund to £30m this year.”

Ross Armstrong, Warmworks’ chief executive, added: “We’re proud that the Scottish Government has placed its confidence in Warmworks to deliver the next phase of this national scheme. This will provide high quality, sustainable jobs for our team and our supply chain into the next decade and gives us a fantastic opportunity to build on our success.

“The fact that the Scottish Government has entrusted Warmworks with this hugely significant contract is an endorsement of our values-driven track record, one that has seen us change tens of thousands of lives for the better and one that has provided real and lasting benefits to local communities across the country.

“Warmworks recognises the scale of the challenge in front of us – this new contract comes at a time when people are experiencing difficulties in balancing the need to stay warm at home with the cost of doing so. We also know the importance of prioritising low carbon upgrade options where possible to ensure the country’s net zero ambitions can be met. We stand ready to meet these challenges in a way that makes sure the new scheme can deliver the right help to everyone who is able to benefit from it.

“This new contract is also a significant investment in and opportunity for Scotland’s businesses. We will be making sure that the new scheme continues to be supported by registered and accredited expert installers who will provide our customers with a first-class service.”