Figures for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme released today (29th February) show there were over 2,000 applications for heat pump grants in January 2024 – only exceeded by October and November last year, which immediately followed the increase in government-funded heat pump grants.
The January figure is up 39 per cent on the same month last year as families take advantage of the 50 per cent grant increase introduced by the Government last autumn, making the initiative one of the most generous of its kind in Europe.
The news follows recent government figures showing the UK is the first major economy to halve its emissions – having cut them by 50 per cent between 1990 and 2022, while also growing its economy by 79 per cent.
“I don’t want families to have to choose between cutting costs and cutting emissions” said Energy Security Secretary, Claire Coutinho. “I want families to feel supported, not forced, to make changes that are right for them. After we made our heat pump scheme one of the most generous in Europe, applications have soared by 40 percent year on year - showing that our approach is the right one.”
The figures also revealed the average monthly number of applications from November 2023 to January 2024, the months after the grant increase, has been 39 percent higher than the monthly average before the uplift.
Up to the end of January, the scheme has now received 33,424 applications in total and has issued more than £133 million in vouchers to customers.
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme helps households make the switch from fossil fuel heating systems to cleaner low carbon heating alternatives, by covering the majority of the average upfront cost of an air source heat pump. In October, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak increased grants for the installation of air source and ground source heat pumps to £7,500. The scheme also offers £5,000 off the cost of a biomass boiler.
The figures released today also show a regional breakdown of where heat pumps have been installed in England and Wales. The South West has seen the most with 3,894 installations, followed by the South East with 3,886 and then the East with 2,671.
“It’s great to see interest in the Boiler Upgrade Scheme increasing, supporting the installation of over 20,200 heat pumps to date across England and Wales” said Charlotte Lee Chief Executive of the Heat Pump Association. “The uplift in the grant value for air source and ground source heat pumps in October 2023 to £7,500 has been well received by both the sector and consumers and we hope this increasing interest will be a trend which continues forward, as we move to decarbonise home heating in line with the Government’s legally binding net zero targets.”
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