Warm Homes Plan unveiled: £15bn programme reshapes home upgrades, EPC reform and rental standards

After nearly two years of anticipation, the UK government has now published the full detail of its Warm Homes Plan, turning what was previously a manifesto commitment into a live delivery programme.

Billed as the largest public investment in domestic energy efficiency ever undertaken in Britain, the plan commits £15 billion of public funding over five years. The stated aim is to support insulation, solar PV, battery storage and low-carbon heating across millions of homes, reducing energy bills, improving comfort and helping tackle fuel poverty.

The government estimates that up to five million homes could benefit from upgrades, with as many as one million households lifted out of fuel poverty by 2030.

What is the Warm Homes Plan?

Originally announced ahead of the 2024 General Election, the Warm Homes Plan was positioned as a national programme combining grants and government-backed finance to unlock investment in home energy improvements.

The policy framework centres on:

• Partnerships with local authorities, combined authorities and devolved administrations

• Engagement with banks and building societies to support low-interest lending

• Alignment with future changes to minimum energy efficiency standards (MEES) in the private rented sector

Crucially, the government has reiterated that households will not be forced to remove existing boilers, with upgrades framed as a gradual and supported transition.

Programmes already underway

Elements of the Warm Homes Plan are already being delivered through existing schemes running between 2025 and 2028, including:

• Warm Homes: Local Grant £500 million allocated to English local authorities to upgrade low-performing homes occupied by lower-income households.

• Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund £1.29 billion awarded to social housing providers to improve stock currently below EPC B and C, primarily through fabric improvements and heating upgrades.

  
  

£5bn targeted at low-income households

A central pillar of the programme is £5 billion of fully funded upgrades for households in fuel poverty or on lower incomes.

Rather than a one-size-fits-all approach, measures will be selected based on what is most appropriate for each property. This may include:

• Insulation and wider fabric improvements

• Solar panels and battery storage

• Heat pumps and other low-carbon heating technologies

The intention is to reduce energy costs permanently by improving how homes retain heat and by enabling greater on-site energy generation.

Transition away from the Energy Company Obligation (ECO)

The government has confirmed that the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme will close at the end of March, following its long-standing role in requiring major energy suppliers to fund efficiency improvements.

This change creates uncertainty for parts of the retrofit supply chain that have relied on ECO-funded work. In response, the Warm Homes Plan outlines a transition towards capital-funded public programmes from April 2026.

Key measures include:

• New procurement routes for publicly funded retrofit schemes

• Conditions attached to 'top-up' funding to encourage use of the existing ECO supply chain

• A ministerially led working group to manage the transition and coordinate opportunities for installers and subcontractors

The government has also indicated that ECO4 may be extended to December 2026, primarily to allow time for remediation of non-compliant installations, without increasing delivery targets or consumer costs.

Finance to address upfront cost barriers

For many owner-occupiers, the challenge is affordability rather than long-term benefit. The Warm Homes Plan introduces government-backed low- and zero-interest loans, aimed at reducing the upfront cost of measures such as solar PV, battery storage and heat pumps.

Alongside this, support for low-carbon heating will continue through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, maintaining the £7,500 heat pump grant.

Clearer direction for the private rented sector

The Plan also sets out a clearer trajectory for the domestic private rented sector in England and Wales, recognising that many tenants still live in cold, damp or inefficient homes.

Following the 2025 consultation on improving the energy performance of rented homes, the government has confirmed that:

• Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) will rise to EPC Band C

• Compliance will be required across two new EPC metrics

• The standard will apply to all tenancies by October 2030

• The cost cap for improvements will increase to £10,000, although typical costs are expected to be significantly lower

Notably, there has been no corresponding update to EPCs for commercial or non-domestic rented buildings, leaving existing regulations unchanged for now.

New Warm Homes Agency announced

A new Warm Homes Agency (WHA) will be established as a dedicated public body responsible for overseeing delivery of the programme.

The agency will:

• Consolidate functions currently spread across multiple organisations

• Replace Salix and absorb relevant roles from government and Ofgem

• Provide clear, impartial guidance on eligibility, funding routes and retrofit options

• Help households identify trusted installers

• Work with manufacturers, installers and trade bodies to support workforce growth and training

Job creation and skills growth

To deliver the scale of retrofit envisaged, the government expects employment in energy efficiency and clean heating to grow from around 60,000 roles in 2023 to as many as 240,000 by 2030.

This includes roles such as:

• Retrofit Coordinators

• Heat pump installers

• Solar and battery specialists

• Energy assessors and compliance professionals

EPC reform: partial clarity, more to come

Alongside the Warm Homes Plan, the government has provided an update on Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) reform, although the full consultation outcome has not yet been published.

This delay reflects the fact that the new EPC metrics are closely linked to future MEES requirements in the private rented sector.

What is changing for EPCs in England & Wales?

The government is targeting October 2026 for the introduction of redesigned EPCs, with new headline metrics including:

• Energy cost – indicative running costs for occupiers

• Fabric performance – thermal efficiency of the building envelope

• Heating system performance – efficiency and environmental impact

• Smart readiness – potential to integrate smart energy technologies

To support continuity:

• The existing Energy Efficiency Rating (EER) will be retained during the transition

• EPC validity will remain at 10 years

• EPCs will be required at the point of marketing, not sale or let

• Government is considering requiring a new EPC when an existing one expires for all privately rented properties

  
  

From 2026 onwards, EPCs in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are expected to diverge significantly from those used in Scotland, with different headline metrics and regulatory approaches.

In parallel, a separate consultation has been launched on EPC banding under the Home Energy Model (HEM), which will eventually replace SAP as the calculation engine behind EPCs.

What this means in practice

The Warm Homes Plan represents a structural shift in how energy efficiency is funded, regulated and assessed across the housing stock. For homeowners, landlords and property professionals alike, it reinforces the growing importance of accurate EPCs, forward-planning for MEES compliance, and evidence-based upgrade strategies.

Haptic EPC will continue to monitor developments closely and provide updates as further guidance and consultation outcomes are released.