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The UK Government has officially published its long-awaited Warm Homes Plan, which is considered the largest public investment in home upgrades in British history. The plan sets out to help millions of homes benefit from solar panels, batteries, heat pumps and insulation that can cut energy bills and tackle fuel poverty.

Homes and buildings account for roughly one-fifth of UK emissions, making residential decarbonisation central to climate strategy. With £15 billion set to be invested and an ambition to upgrade five million homes by 2030, the new plan is designed to provide a financial offering for every household, regardless of income, alongside stronger regulations in the private rented sector and a renewed push on heat networks.

The national ambitions include:

• Upgrading up to 5 million homes by 2030
• Lifting up to 1 million households out of fuel poverty
• Strong focus on UK supply chain, UK‑made heat pumps
• 180,000 new jobs across retrofit and clean energy industries

The key announcements:

£5 billion for low-income households:

A public investment of £5 billion will be set aside to offer low-income household upgrades, including solar, batteries, insulation and heat pump installations. The government estimates these improvements could bring down energy bills significantly compared to a gas boiler with no other upgrades. This is to be delivered via local authorities and housing associations.

£2 billion in consumer loans for everyone else:

A key new measure in the plan is £2 billion (up to £1.7 billion allocated to new low and zero interest consumer loans for home energy efficiency upgrades combined with up to £300 million of other government funding to lower costs of loans to consumers) to help with the cost of various home upgrades, including solar panels, batteries and heat pumps combined with the Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant. This “able to pay” offer is designed to unlock the middle market, where high upfront costs have historically been the biggest barrier.

Boiler Upgrade Scheme extended and expanded:

There is £2.7 billion for the existing Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS), which will see its annual allocation increase gradually. The plan confirms that the existing BUS will continue to offer grants of up to £7,500 per property for installation of heat pumps. Whilst other financial support outlined in the plan may only be available to consumers on lower incomes, the BUS grant will continue to be universal, with no means testing. A £2,500 grant per property will also be available for air to air (as opposed to air to water) heat pumps which can also provide cooling, together with innovating technologies such as the use of heat batteries. It is worth noting that a phase-out date for gas boilers is nowhere mentioned in the recent Warm Homes Plan.

Changes to the 1-meter rule:

The new plan has amended the permitted development right for air source heat pumps in England to provide more flexibility, allowing more households, particularly those with less outdoor space, to install an air source heat pump without needing to submit a planning application. The changes enable heat pumps to be installed within 1m of the property boundary, increase the size limit of the heat pump from 0.6m3 to 1.5m3 for houses, double the number of heat pumps permitted (from one to two) for detached properties, and allow the installation of air source heat pumps that can be used for cooling as well as heating, meaning air-to-air heat pumps can also benefit from the permitted development right.

Warm Homes Agency:

The plan establishes a new Warm Homes Agency that will bring together existing functions from across government bodies (Salix, DESNZ, and parts of Ofgem), providing new consumer support while improving efficiency and coordinating the transition in the current delivery landscape. It will be the “front door” for home upgrade advice and programmes and oversee consumer protection and installation quality. It is expected to start delivering impartial advice from 2027 and will coordinate and oversee home upgrades in this Parliament and beyond, as well as support local authorities and housing providers with area-based schemes.

Tripling rooftop solar by 2030:

The UK Government expects the number of rooftop solar panel systems to triple in residential deployment on up to 3 million homes by 2030, forming a core part of the country’s Clean Power Action Plan. Rooftop solar on homes will make a significant contribution to the ambition of 45-47 GW of solar. The Warm Homes Plan reinforces this direction and wants to improve access to rooftop solar for low- and middle-income households and the social rented sector by making solar PV more affordable.

District Heating networks:

The Warm Homes Plan highlights the effectiveness of heat networks and how Denmark successfully supplies 66% of all households via a district heat network, with a similar-sized housing stock to the UK. It’s anticipated that around a fifth of total building heat demand in 2050 (20%) will be supplied through a low-carbon heat network. In the short term, the target is to double the amount of heat demand met via networks to 7% by 2035.

The plan signals that local authorities will become strategic stewards of local heat infrastructure. They will play a central role in deciding where networks are developed and how they are delivered.

Renters and Social Housing:

Renters get some of the most concrete protections in the plan. Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) in the domestic private rented sector will be increased to EPC Band C, with landlords needing to meet this standard by October 2030, but landlords will not be expected to spend more than £10,000 per property. They will remain eligible for the BUS and improvements made from October 2025 can count towards the property’s cost cap in 2030. Social housing tenants will benefit too, with interventions aiming to retrofit/ upgrade multiple dwellings at the same time, potentially meaning upgrades to entire streets.

The Warm Homes Plan is the most comprehensive statement of intent on home energy efficiency the UK has seen in a generation. The investment is real, the ambition is clear, and the focus on both fuel poverty and clean technology marks a genuine shift in approach. Whether delivery matches aspiration will depend on the government’s ability to scale up supply chains, upskill the workforce, support local authorities and get grants and loans into the hands of homeowners quickly. The programme could reshape the country’s housing stock and position the UK as a leader in residential decarbonisation while improving everyday living conditions for millions.

If you want to get on top of the plan and start upskilling your workforce today, get in touch at [email protected] to find out how Carbon Literacy can help.