Warm Homes Plan to benefit 300,000 households

Up to 300,000 households are to benefit from home upgrades over the next year, as the government announces new steps to help households save money on their bills and deliver cleaner heating.

This includes increasing the budget for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme which will help households switch to a heat pump, saving families around £100 a year compared to a gas boiler by using a smart tariff effectively, and insulating more homes across the country. This could potentially save homeowners around £200 per year.

This comes part of the government’s Warm Homes Plan, which intends to support homeowners across England and Wales in receiving a £7,500 heat pump grant as part of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme. According to Ofgem, this had the highest number of applications ever in October.

Minister for energy consumers Miatta Fahnbulleh said: “The idea at the heart of our Warm Homes Plan is a simple one — all families deserve the security of a home they can afford to heat.”

The government also want to remove the one metre rule when installing an air source heat pump; homeowners will no longer need to submit a planing application in England. Octopus figures show that 34 per cent of those who order a heat pump are discouraged or drop out due to planning permission difficulties, so this would remove barriers to entry.

The Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund and the Warm Homes: Local Grant would also allow social housing residents, lower income householders and renters to receive funded energy efficiency upgrades such as insulation and low-carbon heating, respectively.

The Warm Homes Plan would ensure millions more households benefit from homegrown energy delivered by every new turbine, solar panel or pylon built on the path to energy independence. This falls in line with the government’s mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower. Miatta Fahnbulleh said: “This follows our plan to lift over one million households out of fuel poverty by consulting on boosting minimum energy efficiency standards for all renters by 2030, delivering warmer homes and cheaper bills.”

Following Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, households have faced soaring energy bills, exposing years of overreliance on international gas markets. Miatta Fahnbulleh has commented: “For too long, [heating] has been out of reach for far too many people who have been left with draughty homes and sky-high bills. That is why we are taking immediate action today to make cleaner heating available to more households.”

The government is set on overturning this legacy by investing in homegrown, cleaner energy free from the control of dictators.

Today’s steps are monumental in how they support household upgrades, encourage innovation, and back British manufacturers.

Investment for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme is set to double to £295 million next year, and the government also intends to oversee around £3.2 billion of investment in warmer homes across 2025 to 2026, delivering measures to help lower bills and support cleaner heating for up to 300,000 households.

Plans to lift over one million households out of fuel poverty are in place, starting with increasing minimum energy efficiency standards for all rented homes by 2030. Increasing these standards on boilers and heat pumps would save households with a new gas boiler £30 a year on running costs. Removing barriers to acquire an air source heat pump will also increase accessibility to greener, more affordable energy sources.

The government have also pledged to support British manufacturers, rather than relying on imported energy. Intending to introduce a reformed Clean Heat Market Mechanism on 1st April 2025, the government will offer more support for heat pump installation in order to boost sales, as well as supporting the industry by investing over £5 million in Ideal Heating as the first award from the Heat Pump Investment Accelerator competition. This will kickstart a national heat pump industry to bolster the UK’s energy security and support hundreds of low-carbon jobs.

By trailblazing a new approach to delivering warmer homes and taking immediate action to speed up the distribution of cleaner heating, the government intends to cut energy bills, tackle fuel poverty and create new job opportunities across the country.

Adam Scorer, National Energy Action’s chief executive, said: “National Energy Action (NEA) welcome this significant additional investment which kick starts the emerging Warm Homes Plan. Warm homes are the foundation of healthier, happier, more productive lives, especially for fuel poor households facing higher costs on the lowest incomes. NEA knows that these households often suffer ill-health which is worsened in cold conditions. We look forward to work with government to realise the full ambition and benefits of a comprehensive plan for Warm Homes.”