The answer
Can a charity apply for a building it does not own?
Possibly. CARES can consider a qualifying lease, but the exact remaining term and your group's rights matter. The current guidance says the lease should run for at least five years after March 2027. Check the full document, not only its expiry date, and get written permission for the proposed work before relying on a grant-dependent design.
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What does the lease actually allow?
Read the complete signed lease, including plans and variations. An expiry date can look long enough while an early break clause allows the arrangement to end much sooner. Check whether your rights cover the roof, external wall, outdoor plant space, buried cables and access for maintenance. Ask who will own equipment when the lease ends and whether the group might be required to remove it.
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Can the system stay and be maintained?
A heat pump or solar array is intended to work for years, so your organisation needs more than permission to enter the building this season. It must be able to install, operate and service the equipment and to keep it in place for the period required by the fund and its agreement. If the lease is short or ambiguous, raise that with Local Energy Scotland and the landlord early; a technical survey cannot cure a missing legal right.
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Who needs to agree to the work?
A supportive phone call with a landlord is useful but not the same as formal consent to drill walls, place outdoor plant or use the roof. Draw the proposed work and route on a plan, then ask what form of written consent is required and who signs it. There may also be planning, listed-building or other approvals. Put the decision dates on the project timeline so a late consent does not leave your group rushing toward a funding deadline.
Does your lease let you fit and keep the equipment?
Put three dates on one page: when your present lease ends, the earliest date either party can break it, and the minimum date required by the current CARES guidance. If an option to extend is needed, check who controls it and whether it has actually been exercised. Do not assume a possible future renewal counts as a present legal right.
Ask the surveyor to mark the proposed outdoor unit, pipe route, inverter and panels on a simple plan. Send that plan to the landlord with a request for the form of consent the lease requires. A general 'we are happy with green energy' email may not cover roof penetrations, structural work or maintenance access.
Keep the written consent with the lease and the grant documents. If the group is unsure how a break clause, ownership of the equipment or removal duty works, it should ask an appropriate adviser and Local Energy Scotland before relying on the project. FLO can help define the installation but cannot determine legal rights or award funding.
What to check next
Your next steps
Where we checked the facts
Check the original information.
These official pages back up the rules and technical details above. They can change, so check them again before spending money or starting work.
Apply this to your own property
Could your community building be suitable?
Tell FLO about your building and the work your group is considering. A free survey checks what may fit; Local Energy Scotland decides CARES eligibility and funding.