A man from South Croydon says he has temporarily given up his dream of installing a solar-powered hot water system in his his home - because of diminishing Government grants to fund the eco-friendly project.

Mike Farnell lives in the Gallop off Croham Valley Road and has been hoping to install the eco-friendly system for the past couple of years.

However, the work remains undone, mainly because he feels the "miserly" £400 grant currently available is simply not enough.

"When I first made enquiries two years ago the grant was £600," said Mike, 55, "but it has gone down twice since then and stands at only £400.

"The Government keeps talking about how much they want people to be more energy efficient but how can they when they keep cutting the grant?

"For me to be able to install the solar panels in the best place for them to capture the most sun I have been told that I have to make some changes to my roof.

"Although I have had a couple of very good quotes to have that work done, it is still extra money that a £400 grant would not cover."

There is possible light on the horizon though. In Gordon Brown's budget this year he announced a £6million increase in the funding for people wanting to install small-scale renewables such as wind turbines and solar panels.

That money will be ploughed into the system which hands out the grants, the Department of Trade and Industry's low carbon buildings programme, set up 12 months ago to replace its Clear Skies and Solar PV grant programme. But that is currently suspended, meaning no grants were available in April, while the DTI decides how to make use of the extra money.

Decisions will be made whether to raise or lower the grant level, as well as the method of distributing them. Over the past year they have been offered on a first-come, first-served basis once a month but have been so oversubscribed they have run out in minutes.

While these decisions are made though, Mike, and many others like him, will continue with his old system with the hope that one day he can call upon the financial help he feels eco-homes deserve.