The UK Warm Homes Plan was finally published on 21 January 2026 by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.
The £15 billion public investment over this Parliament to upgrade up to 5 million homes by 2030 will lift up to 1 million families out of fuel poverty. It will also drive widespread adoption of solar PV, batteries, heat pumps, insulation, and other measures.
Key Highlights
Ambitious Scale & Targets: Aiming for up to 450,000 heat pumps annually by 2030 (including air-source, ground-source, and hybrids), tripling homes with solar panels (targeting up to 3 million more rooftops), and delivering packages that combine renewables with fabric improvements.
Funding & Delivery Mix: £5 billion for fully funded/low-income packages, £2.7 billion for the expanded Boiler Upgrade Scheme (with grants up to £7,500 for heat pumps, plus new support for air-to-air and heat batteries), £2 billion in consumer loans, £2.7 billion in “innovative finance” (e.g., green mortgages), and continued ECO contributions. There’s also £500 million for local authority-led schemes – great for partnerships with councils and housing associations.
Support Across Tenures: Targeted help for low-income and fuel-poor households, upgrades for social housing, new renter protections (including confirmed EPC C minimum for private rented sector by October 2030, with exemptions), and a “universal offer” so any household can access upgrades when ready.
Shift in Emphasis: It prioritises clean tech (solar, batteries, heat pumps) over insulation-first approaches of past schemes.
The Devil is in the Detail
With the ambitious plans, success will depend on execution. Key areas we’ll be watching closely:
- How quickly and smoothly the funding streams roll out – past schemes have suffered from delays or complexity.
- Supply chain capacity: The industry still faces shortages of qualified installers, retrofit coordinators, and electricians. Scaling to 450k+ heat pumps/year will require rapid workforce growth and training – the Plan mentions bolstering the UK workforce, but details are light.
- Practical access for private landlords and smaller projects: With MEES tightening to EPC C in the PRS, how easy will it be for individual owners to navigate grants/loans without excessive bureaucracy?
- Integration with existing standards (PAS 2035/2030) and quality assurance: This Plan’s success hinges on maintaining high standards amid rapid scale-up.
- Regional/local delivery: The Warm Homes Agency could help, but coordination between national schemes, local authorities, and installers will be crucial to avoid fragmentation.
Comment
Lee Rix, Managing Director at Eco Approach shared his thoughts on the announcement:
“The announcement of the Warm Homes Plan is a big step forward for the UK’s housing stock”.
“We welcome the clarity this provides for the industry. Decarbonising millions of homes is an ambitious target and it is encouraging to finally see a plan of this scale being delivered, focusing on making homes warmer and significantly cheaper to run”.
“We are looking forward to seeing the finer details of the rollout and the positive impact this will have on the communities we serve”.
Luke Loveridge also shared his thoughts:
“This is a step in the right direction and shows the industry the UK Government’s commitment to this agenda. This should boost demand further with homeowners, and with Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) on the horizon for private sector landlords, the next challenge is going to supply chain – there are 26% less qualified electricians than 6 years ago”.
“It is interesting they have included heat batteries and air to air heat pumps also, which will make it more attractive to some households”.
Final Thoughts
Overall, hopefully retrofit is moving from stop-start pilots to a sustained national programme. We’ll still focus on quality first, compliant, property-specific upgrades for our clients.
The hard work of delivery begins.
