UK Government to streamline heat pump installations, benefiting millions of households
UK Government to streamline heat pump installations, benefiting millions of households
In the UK, if you want to build a new house or make a major renovation to your existing house, you need to request planning permission from the local council. This rule was bought in to stop people doing huge extensions or building massive out buildings. So it’s generally a good idea as people often have very peculiar ideas about what will look good.
But to oil the wheels and make the process a bit easier, you are allowed to do a small amount of work under a scheme called permitted development. The rules are easy to follow and can be found online. For example, you can put up a shed or a conservatory without needing to go for full planning permission, which can be costly and is very slow. But the planning rules and permitted development rules were written eons ago before renewables were a thing.
So, for the last 15 years if you want to install a heat pump strictly you needed to get planning permission, it was a ridiculous administrative hurdle which prevented many people considering what its without doubt the best modern heating solution for any UK house.
Graham Hendra, Heat Pump Development Officer at Haier and renowned industry expert, mentioned:
"10 years ago, the rules for planning were loosened a bit so that a heat pump could be installed using the permitted development rules if it was out of site, not too big and not near the boundary of the property. It was better but still many systems did not meet the requirement. "
Because of this, the Heat Pump industry had 2 options :
- Moan like mad on Linkedin
And/or just put the heat pump in without planning and hope no one noticed.
Literally hundreds of units went in with no planning and literally no one noticed making a slight mockery of the rules.
I’m a simple guy, so I like simple solutions that anyone can understand. The planning rules have always baffled me. Its ok to build a shed 20 times the size of a heat pump and do so without asking anyone’s permission, but you can’t install a heat pump without planning. You can store 20 heat pumps in the new shed and still you don’t need planning. But if you dare take a heat pump out the shed and put it in the garden, planning is required. And in a bizarre twist, no one ever applies for planning for air conditioning units which are identical in look and noise to a heat pump.
Well now great news, the planning regulations have been changed finally and now you don’t need planning for a heat pump any more. There are still a few restrictions but basically, you can fit a heat pump now, it turns out they are ok.
Heat pumps, boilers that live in the Garden. What’s stopping you now?
Discover our R290 A2W Heating Range
Written by Graham Hendra, Heat Pump Development Officer at Haier HVAC Solutions.
