It comes as the BBC reports that further heatwaves are likely in the UK in the coming weeks, after last month was the warmest June on record for England.
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has focussed on driving down carbon emissions through electric heating. For most households, this means switching to a heat pump. However, trade association OFTEC argues that, alongside delivering on our long-term net zero goals, policies must also help homes adapt to the changing weather we are already seeing today.
OFTEC is urging the government to rethink its approach to focus on the best outcomes for consumers, tackling both carbon emissions from heating, the need for summer cooling and fabric improvements in the home simultaneously.
The government currently funds a Boiler Upgrade Scheme which provides grants of £7,500 to help households with the upfront cost of switching to an air to water heat pump, which heats the home via radiators or underfloor heating. Homes on oil and LPG can now access £9,000 funding in recognition of the additional costs they face.
However, many households still face significant costs to top up the funding which makes it a costly programme for both the government and consumers.
It also doesn’t address a fundamental challenge which is that UK housing stock is not equipped for the extreme heat we are now seeing. Many properties are relatively poor at retaining heat during cold weather and are equally unable to keep the interior cool when outside temperatures rise. That’s why during heatwaves they quickly become uncomfortable, and potentially dangerously hot for older people or those with medical conditions.
OFTEC argues there is a particular opportunity off the gas grid to address both carbon emissions and heat management. By supporting the transition of oil heated homes onto renewable liquid fuels like Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO), households can cut their carbon emissions without the high upfront cost of converting to a full heat pump heating system, and without the need for a government grant.
This approach then frees up funding for both the government and households which could be redirected to adapt properties for hotter summer temperatures, which could include insulation and efficient air cooling systems to regulate the temperature.
However, the trade association argues the current policy focus is draining both government and household budgets, which doesn’t leave any funding to implement other home improvement measures.
Malcolm Farrow, director of marketing and external affairs at OFTEC, commented: “The government is rightly focussed on driving down carbon emissions, but is missing the opportunity to support investment in home improvements to help people cope with the summer heatwaves we are seeing. There’s no point having low carbon homes if they’re too hot for people to actually live in.
“Limited grant funding for air to air heat pump systems, which work by circulating warm or cool air and can provide both heating and cooling, is already available, but currently only where it’s the sole heating system in the home. This effectively limits the support to owners of flats, and similar small homes.
“We need to invest in adaptability as well as decarbonisation and a huge number of homes will potentially need summer cooling. A more pragmatic approach could be to extend grant-funding for these systems, including for homes with existing heating systems, which isn’t currently the case.
“Off the gas grid, switching the UK’s 1.7 million oil heated homes to renewable liquid fuels would immediately cut emissions, and free up additional funding which could be diverted to help make these properties better equipped for the extreme summer temperatures we’re seeing. The air to air heat pump system would keep the most critically important rooms cooler in summer and could provide useful supplementary or background low carbon heating in winter too. It’s the kind of win-win that I’m sure many households would welcome.”
For more information visit www.oftec.org
