The Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) supports the decarbonisation of heat in buildings. It provides upfront capital grants to support the installation of heat pumps and biomass boilers in homes and non-domestic buildings in England and Wales.
Acting on behalf of property owners, installers can apply for:
£450 million of grant funding is available over three years from 2022 to 2025.
On the 14 March, Claire Coutinho, Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, announced updates on the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) and the Clean Heat Market Mechanism (CHMM).
Government have announced that they will:
The MCS Biomass Standard includes biomass boilers with integrated cooking functions. This change creates more choice for consumers, with a wider range of products.
On the recent announcement, HETAS Head of Technical Calvin May says:
HETAS is a leading provider of MCS product approval for biomass products, alongside our own Cleaner Choice certification scheme. To find out more about the changes to the BUS and product certification, contact the team on xxxxxx or email [email protected].
At the same time as announcing changes to the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, government published their response to the consultation on improving boiler standards and efficiency.
The government response sets out updated proposals to improve gas boiler system efficiency which aims to reduce household energy bills. In addition, once a decision is made in 2026 regarding the role of hydrogen in heat decarbonisation, government will indicate whether domestic gas boilers must be hydrogen-ready, and then only hydrogen from 2030 onwards. The response also set out plans to enable the installation of high-quality, efficient hybrid heat pumps.
Further, government plan to implement most proposals via an update to ecodesign and energy labelling regulations, which would apply in Great Britain. They intend to publish a consultation on draft legislation to give effect to these proposals in due course.
View the full statement here.
Read the full outcome to the Improving boiler standards and efficiency consultation here.
Acting on behalf of property owners, installers can apply for:
- £7,500 off the cost and installation of an air source heat pump
- £7,500 off the cost and installation of a ground source heat pump, including water source heat pumps
- £5,000 off the cost and installation of a biomass boiler
£450 million of grant funding is available over three years from 2022 to 2025.
On the 14 March, Claire Coutinho, Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, announced updates on the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) and the Clean Heat Market Mechanism (CHMM).
Government have announced that they will:
- Remove the requirement for a property to have no outstanding Energy Performance Certificate recommendations for loft and cavity wall insulation – although government guidance remains that properties should be appropriately insulated. This will address concerns about forcing hard-pressed families to carry out insulation upgrades for them to be eligible for the scheme, instead empowering them to decide what is right for them.
- Increase the capacity limit for shared ground loops from 45kW to 300kW. This will address concerns that the cost of groundworks for ground source heat pumps is a significant barrier to deployment. This change will spread the costs of ground infrastructure, making them a more affordable solution for consumers.
- Expand the definition of biomass boilers eligible for the scheme to include those which have a cooking function, provided it is integrated and cannot be controlled separately to the heating function of the property. This will allow a wider range of biomass boiler models under the scheme, thereby widening consumer choice.
- Introduce flexibility into the regulations to be able to vary the grant levels more quickly for specific types of property if needed in response to changing market conditions or future regulation.
Biomass products
The MCS Biomass Standard includes biomass boilers with integrated cooking functions. This change creates more choice for consumers, with a wider range of products.
On the recent announcement, HETAS Head of Technical Calvin May says:
HETAS is a leading provider of MCS product approval for biomass products, alongside our own Cleaner Choice certification scheme. To find out more about the changes to the BUS and product certification, contact the team on xxxxxx or email [email protected].
Government’s response the improving boiler standards and efficiency consultation
At the same time as announcing changes to the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, government published their response to the consultation on improving boiler standards and efficiency.
The government response sets out updated proposals to improve gas boiler system efficiency which aims to reduce household energy bills. In addition, once a decision is made in 2026 regarding the role of hydrogen in heat decarbonisation, government will indicate whether domestic gas boilers must be hydrogen-ready, and then only hydrogen from 2030 onwards. The response also set out plans to enable the installation of high-quality, efficient hybrid heat pumps.
Further, government plan to implement most proposals via an update to ecodesign and energy labelling regulations, which would apply in Great Britain. They intend to publish a consultation on draft legislation to give effect to these proposals in due course.
View the full statement here.
Read the full outcome to the Improving boiler standards and efficiency consultation here.