All you need to know as households offered grants to save on energy bills

Millions of families could soon have more affordable ways to heat their homes—thanks to new government proposals aimed at cutting bills and slashing carbon emissions. Under the plans, households will get more choice over how to upgrade their heating systems, with new options like air-to-air heat pumps and heat batteries being considered for government grants.

The move is part of the Warm Homes Plan, designed to make homes greener, cheaper to run and easier to heat—while also boosting British industry and jobs.

Energy Minister Miatta Fahnbulleh said: “Our Warm Homes Plan will mean lower bills and warmer homes for millions of families – helping drive better living standards as part of the Plan for Change. Following a record-breaking month for applications to our Boiler Upgrade Scheme, we are now proposing to give working families more choice and flexibility to pick the low-carbon upgrades that work best for them. And on top of this, we are investing over £4 million in Copeland to continue building a homegrown heat pump industry and training up the army of skilled workers we need to achieve this.”

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The Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which helps with the cost of installing green heating systems, saw a record 4,028 applications in March—an 88% rise on the same month last year. Families can get up to £7,500 off a heat pump, which could save them around £100 a year on energy bills when paired with smart tariffs.

As demand rises, ministers have launched a consultation to expand the scheme—potentially including technologies like heat batteries and offering new ways to pay, such as installments or monthly leasing deals, similar to car finance. Meanwhile, the government says it is ramping up efforts to train a ‘Clean Power Army’ of workers to carry out home retrofits. Up to 18,000 new trainees will be supported to install heat pumps, solar panels, insulation and heat networks.

A major boost is also coming to UK manufacturing, with £4.6 million invested in Copeland, Northern Ireland, to expand production of key heat pump parts—helping to cut reliance on foreign gas and protect households from price shocks.

The investment is backed by Copeland itself and will, ministers say, help fuel economic growth and support green jobs of the future. Industry leaders have welcomed the moves.

Charlotte Lee, CEO of the Heat Pump Association, said: “Following a record year for UK heat pump sales in 2024, we warmly welcome today’s announcements which will continue to support growth in the sector and increased deployment of clean heating.”

Chris O’Shea, boss of Centrica, which owns British Gas, said: “We are delighted with the government’s proposals to expand the Boiler Upgrade Scheme… We can’t wait to add more to our Clean Power Army.”

The announcement comes as ministers make a final call for tenants and landlords to have their say on raising energy efficiency standards in private rental homes. Proposals would see all rental properties brought up to Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) C by 2030—up from the current EPC E standard. It could lift up to one million households out of fuel poverty, the government claims.

Greg Jackson, CEO of Octopus Energy, welcomed the plans: “Britain has a huge opportunity to create thousands of good jobs as part of our energy transition... It’s good to see backing for training that will get anyone, no matter if they’re school leavers or career changers, into these high-impact jobs.”