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Climate Safe Rooms

Subsidies for eligible concession card holders to create a thermally comfortable room at home

The Climate Safe Rooms pilot program ran from January - June 2025. 

It provided up to $10,000 in free energy upgrades to eligible concession card holders with a health condition that put them at risk from extreme heat or cold, to upgrade a room in their home so it stays a comfortable temperature on hot and cold days. 

Learn more about the completed pilot program below or read the Climate Safe Rooms and Yarra Home Energy Upgrades Pilot Programs Report [ PDF, 5.86 MB] . 

A Climate Safe Room is a room in your home or apartment that has been upgraded so it stays comfortable even on very hot and cold days.

This pilot program upgraded one room in participants' homes as a Climate Safe Room.

Depending on each home’s needs, upgrades included: 

  • Ceiling insulation
  • Draught proofing to seal gaps and cracks
  • Reverse cycle heating and cooling
  • A small solar system to offset the costs of running the heating and cooling  
  • Passive cooling upgrades such as window coverings or ceiling fans

Participants received a home energy assessment to determine the best upgrades for the room. 

Learn more about Climate Safe Rooms from our pilot program partners, 3EA.  

No, there was no cost to participants to receive the energy upgrades through this program. 
 

Concession card and health care card holders living in the City of Yarra who were receiving support services for a health condition that puts them at risk from extreme heat or cold. 

This included renters, homeowners and community housing residents. Public housing owned by the Victorian Government was not eligible. 

To be eligible for a Climate Safe Room, participants or someone in their home must: 

  • Live in the City of Yarra and be aged 18 years or older
  • Own their home, rent their home, or live in community housing (not State Government-owned public housing)  
  • Hold one of the Commonwealth concession cards listed below:  
    • Centrelink Pensioner Concession Card  
    • Veterans’ Affairs Pensioner Concession Card  
    • Centrelink Health Care Card  
    • Veterans’ Affairs Gold Card for All Conditions  
    • Veterans’ Affairs Gold Card War Widow/er or TPI  
    • Veterans’ Affairs Gold Card POW & EDA  
  • Currently receive support services for an existing chronic health condition that puts the participant or someone in their home at risk during heatwaves and/or extreme cold
  • Live in a home that does not currently have at least one room that can be effectively and affordably heated and cooled, and where the program’s energy upgrades can be installed safely. Through the program participants received a home energy assessment to determine this. In apartments, units or townhouses, only upgrades that did not require owners’ corporation, or where owners' corporation approval could be obtained in the timeframes, could be installed through this program. 
     

Examples of eligible health conditions included: 

  • severe persistent asthma
  • cardiovascular disease
  • cerebral palsy
  • chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
  • diabetes
  • fibromyalgia
  • motor neuron disease (MND)
  • kidney disease
  • lupus
  • lymphedema
  • multiple sclerosis (MS)
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • polio / post-polio syndrome
  • quadriplegia / paraplegia
  • severe respiratory disease
  • rheumatoid arthritis or other severe musculoskeletal condition
  • scleroderma
  • or other medical or mental health condition that puts the participant at risk from extreme heat or cold, as confirmed a medical professional or community health professional.  

Participants needed to provide confirmation from a health professional that they met the health condition eligibility requirement. They did not need to disclose to us what their eligible health condition was.

Health professionals able to confirm eligibility included: 

  • General Practitioners or Community Health Professionals with knowledge of the applicant’s health condition. 

Community Health Professionals included: 

  • community nurses
  • case managers
  • allied health staff
  • social workers
  • service facilitators. 

A template letter confirming health eligibility [ PDF, 136.72 KB] was signed by a health professional to verify eligibility for this requirement.

 

Eligible concession cards

Participants completed an expression of interest.

A Home Energy Assessor and Electrician visited participants' homes for a home energy assessment to confirm if the home could receive upgrades, and recommend the best upgrades. 

With approval from landlords for rental properties, our project partners arranged for licensed tradespeople to install upgrades. 

Renters, community housing residents and people living in apartments were eligible to apply, as long as they met the eligibility requirements. 

Victorian Government-owned public housing was not eligible for this program.

Renters and community housing residents needed approval from their landlord or community housing organisation for upgrades to be installed. 

For apartment buildings and townhouses, only energy upgrades that did not require owners’ corporation approval, or where approval could be obtained in the timeframes, could be installed. Some products cannot be installed in some building types. 

Yarra residents who meet the eligibility requirements could apply, even if their home is in a heritage overlay. 

In homes in a heritage overlay, most Climate Safe Rooms upgrades could be installed in the same way as in another home.

Some upgrades, such as solar, may require a planning permit if visible from the street or a public park. 

There is no fee for a planning permit for solar in the heritage overlay. If your solar will not be visible from the street or a public park, you do not need a planning permit. 

A small number of properties have additional heritage controls.

Find out more about solar in a heritage overlay.

Yarra Council has committed to urgent action on climate change through its second Climate Emergency Plan [ PDF, 9.51 MB] , 2024-2030, and its Climate Emergency Action Plan 2024-2027 [ PDF, 2.72 MB] .

This pilot program was part of our commitment to support households facing barriers to make their homes more comfortable in hot and cold weather, improve energy efficiency, electrify, and power their homes with renewable energy.

This includes a commitment to support people living on low incomes, renters, and apartment residents to ensure no one is left behind in the transition to a zero emissions city powered by 100% renewable energy. 

You may be eligible to receive subsidised energy upgrades for home improvements to keep your home a comfortable temperature on hot and cold days through the Yarra Home Energy Upgrades program. 

Learn more about Yarra Home Energy Upgrades.

 

Yes. Interpreters were arranged for participants who needed this service. 

For interpreter support, call 03 9280 1940.

Download a fact sheet about the Climate Safe Rooms pilot program in other languages: 

For interpreter support, call 03 9280 1940.