Drayton has welcomed the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, but is sending a cautious message that existing heating systems still relying on gas must not be forgotten in the country’s roadmap to reducing carbon emissions.
As part of the Government’s £3.9 billion Heat and Buildings Strategy, the £450m Boiler Upgrade Scheme replaces the Renewable Heat Incentive, which ran from April 2014 to March 2022. Open to installations commissioned from April 1st, households struggling to find the upfront capital for a heat pump will now be able to reduce the cost and start to take advantage of low carbon heat in their home.
Remi Volpe, Managing Director at Drayton, commented: “Here at Drayton, we are delighted to see the introduction of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme which brings up front payments of £5000 for Air Source Heat Pumps and £6000 for Ground Source Heat Pumps. This new scheme helps provide necessary financial assistance towards the installation of these low-carbon heating solutions and will hopefully be the starting catalyst that incentivises more homeowners to think about changing the way in which they heat their home.
“However, there is still a long way to go in meeting our Next Zero targets. Whilst the launch of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme will help to increase the number of heat pump installations, we must think about what can be done to reduce carbon emissions from those homes with gas boilers, who are not yet ready to make the switch. This includes lowering flow temperatures, which we expect to see introduced into Part L soon, correct system balancing, and ensuring that all systems are fitted with adequate heating controls; all of which will help reduce energy consumption.
“Additionally, it’s important that the industry looks at how we are going to develop the skilled workforce to meet this growing customer demand. To meet the Government’s predicted level of heat pump installations, over 50,000 installers will need to be supported in upskilling to be able to install low-carbon heating systems. This is no small challenge, and it’s clear that proper effort and investment is going to be required to make this possible.”
