The UK government’s heat pump subsidy scheme received 4,013 grant applications in October, the third highest month on record and 4% more than the same month in 2024. It brings the total number of boiler upgrade scheme (BUS) grant applications to 102,735, with 86,446 vouchers approved.
October’s additions result in a total of 37,700 BUS grant voucher applications for the first ten months of the year, comfortably ahead of the previous annual record of 33,657 set in 2024. Almost 33,000 grant vouchers were approved by industry regulator Ofgem in the first 10 months of 2025, representing 87% of the total applications.
Launched in 2022 in a bid to drive heat pump adoption, BUS provides capital grants toward the cost of installation for air-source heat pumps, ground-source heat pumps and, in limited circumstances, biomass boilers. Grants of GBP 7,500 ($9,930) are available for air-to-water and ground-source heat pumps, and support for more technologies is coming soon.
The government announced on Nov. 18 it will add a GBP 2,500 grant for air-to-air heat pumps, and heat batteries in 2026. Funding for the subsidy scheme was bolstered in the UK government’s spring spending review and – despite weeks of media speculation that a cut was coming – was retained in the Chancellor’s Budget, unveiled on Nov. 26.
A fuller picture of the total budget for UK heat pump subsidies is expected soon, as the government prepares to expand its Warm Homes plan, with details to follow. Chancellor Rachel Reeves revealed on Nov. 26 that the Warm Homes plan budget would increase, while the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme – which offers grants for energy efficiency upgrades, including in some cases heat pumps and solar panels – will close on Mar. 31, 2026.
Tasked with providing grants to support low-income homes through energy efficiency upgrades, the Warm Homes plan has been allocated an extra GBP 1.5 billion in funding, for a total budget of GBP 14.7 billion. Technologies supported include heat pumps and rooftop solar.
Warm Homes plan grants are available to eligible households in England, while Boiler Upgrade Scheme grants are available to households in England and Wales. Heat pump subsidy support for consumers in Scotland is available through a Scottish government-administered scheme.
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