Plan to upgrade up to 5m homes, so families can benefit from solar panels, batteries, heat pumps and other tech that will cut bills
The government has announced a comprehensive new Warm Homes Plan, backed by £15bn of public investment. The aim to upgrade up to 5m homes and lift up to 1m families out of fuel poverty by 2030.
Photo by Bill Mead / Unsplash
Full details will be published later in the year, following engagement with the finance sector and consumer groups. While we’ve yet to see a published plan, the government has shared it’s general intentions.
There will be a universal offer available to all, with homeowners able to apply for government-backed low and zero-interest loans to have solar panels, batteries and heat pumps installed. The system will allow people to choose the technologies they want to adopt.
This is welcome news given that there’s already significant demand across the country for this kind of clean energy, not least because it’s a sound investment in helping to cut energy bills in the long term. In recent years, the costs for this kind of tech have continued to fall – but many can still not afford it.
The result, effectively, is those with money have been able to reap the benefits, and those without have not.
That’s why, along the universal offer, the Warm Homes Plan will include targeted support for low-income households and those in fuel poverty. Backed by £5bn of public investment, packages of upgrade will be available free.
Eligibility will depend on what technologies are most suitable for particular homes, but could include fully funded installations of solar panels and a battery, currently worth between £9,000 and £12,000. Alternatively, social housing residents could see upgrades to entire streets at the same time.
The universal offer includes the loans programme as well as new rules to ensure that every newly built home has solar panels installed by default. Together, these measures are expected to triple the number of homes with solar panels by 2030.
The universal offer also includes a grant worth £7,500 for those wishing to install heat pumps, and the first ever offer for air-to-air heat pumps, which can also cool homes during hot weather.
While much of this plan is focused on homeowners, the government also promise new protections for renters, based on the principle that landlords have a responsibility to ensure that rented homes are safe, warm and affordable. The measures will include support for landlords to make these kinds of upgrade.
A new Warm Homes Agency will provide support to consumers in upgrading their homes. The plan will also support local mayors and other leaders to help drive delivery of upgrades on behalf of their residents. As a whole, the new plan also aims to improve the nation’s energy security and help mitigate the effects of climate change.
The government also estimates that the package of measures will create up to 180,000 new high-quality jobs across the energy and clean heating sector by 2030.
Sir Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, says: ‘A warm home shouldn’t be a privilege, it should be a basic guarantee for every family in Britain. Today’s plan marks a turning point. It will help to slash energy costs and lift up to a million people out of fuel poverty. This is a government bearing down on the cost-of-living crisis. By driving bills down for good and upgrading millions of homes, we’re giving people the security and the fair shot they need to get on in life.’
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