Key Takeaways From the Huge Day of Heat Pump Policy Updates
Thursday 21st November 2024 was a day to remember in the heat pump industry as the new Government issued a number of exciting policy updates relating to heat pumps.
Bosch Air Source Heat Pump
Boosting The Boiler Upgrade Scheme
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme provides eligible customers and installations with a grant of £7,500 towards the cost of installing a heat pump. Ever since the grant was increased to £7,500, popularity has increased significantly, which has helped to boost the number of heat pump installations throughout the country.
Due to the increase in popularity, there had been concern in the industry that the scheme might get over-allocated and the budget get spend. Here is what today’s announcement said:
“In light of recent deployment trajectories and following the conclusion of the first phase of the Spending Review on 30 October, we are providing an additional £30 million of funding for this financial year (2024/25), increasing the total budget to £180 million. In addition, the Secretary of State has given Ofgem permission to over-allocate vouchers up to a total of £250 million, to ensure there will not be a hiatus in support. Finally, the Government has committed to almost doubling the budget to £295 million for next year (2025/26). This represents a significant settlement to support the expansion of the low-carbon heat market.”
Today’s announcement therefore confirms the additional funding that has now been allocated to the scheme, meaning that vouchers will not run out meaning that more customers will be able to benefit from the grant and install an air source or ground source heat pump.
Relaxing The Planning Rules For Air Source Heat Pumps
Air source heat pumps have emerged as the leading heat pump technology for mass adoption across the country. Technical developments in the last 5 years, combined with the UK’s moderate climate, mean that air source heat pumps are the most cost-effective route to homeowner’s benefiting from heat pump technology.
However, one of the barriers that has consistently got in the way have bene the somewhat antiquated planning rules. Here’s what today’s announcement had to say:
“An independent review of noise emissions from air source heat pumps, published in November 2023, found that modern heat pumps are generally perceived as quiet and result in few noise complaints. It also found that current planning rules can be an unnecessary barrier to the installation of air source heat pumps.”
Mitsubishi air source heat pump
In a nutshell, these are the critical changes:
1. The 1m boundary rule is being relaxed.
Previously heat pumps needed to be situated more than 1m from the property boundary, otherwise planning permission is required. This rule can be very restrictive for smaller properties. Given how quiet air source heat pumps have become, this rule was completely unnecessary. Installations will still require a noise assessment to make sure that the noise level for your neighbour isn’t above a certain threshold, however the relaxation of this rule will give customers much greater flexibility over where they can install their heat pump.
2. The 0.6m3 unit size rule is being increased to 1.5m3
The maximum unit size rule meant that some large heat pumps ended up getting caught out, and required planning permission. Ironically, larger units can often be quieter, so this was another ruling that didn’t really make sense given the evolution of air source technology. Now that the ruling has been relaxed, virtually all air source heat pumps will be compatible and not require planning permission as a result of their size.
3. Relaxing the maximum number of heat pumps from 1 to 2 for detached properties
The maximum number of units rule meant that any installation at a larger property that required 2 air source heat pumps automatically required a planning application. Again, from the perspective of noise pollution this rule didn’t really make sense, and so the relaxation of this rule will make the adoption of heat pumps at larger properties much easier.
These changes – whilst small – will add up to make a big difference to heat pump adoption. One of the frustrations the industry has always had is the effect of all of these small things adding up to having a big cumulative impact on how many customers are able to proceed with air source heat pump installations. By removing these barriers one by one, it makes the customer journey much simpler, which in turn will mean more customers can benefit from the running cost savings and carbon emission reductions by switching to an air source heat pump.
Other News
There are so many other policy updates made alongside these two very significant ones, here is a short summary:
Funding For The Warm Homes Plan
Funding for the replacement scheme of the current Home Upgrade Grant has been confirmed, and the result will be more homes benefitting from energy efficiency upgrades, including heat pumps. The Warm Homes Plan includes the Warm Homes: Local Grant which provides a great pathway for low income and eligible households in participating areas to benefit from much needed energy efficiency upgrades.
Introducing the Clean Heat Market Mechanism
After much counter-lobbying from the boiler industry, the Government is pressing on with the introduction of the Clean Heat Market Mechanism. This mechanism will incentivise the incumbent boiler manufacturers to invest in promoting heat pump technology, which will play a big role in growing the heat pump market.
In Summary
Quite clear the wind is blowing very strongly for the heat pump market now. Today’s announcements clearly demonstrate the political will of the new Government to grow the heat pump market towards the target of 600,000 by 2028, which will play such an important role in decarbonising UK housing stock.
MCS Umbrella Scheme
If you want to install MCS accredited heat pumps and help your customers access funding like the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, our Alto Assured MCS Umbrella Scheme is the perfect solution. We’ll handle all the MCS paperwork and compliance for you, and our expert team will also design, supply, and commission the system, so you can focus entirely on the installation.