UK Heat Pump Grant Uptake By Region 2026 — Where the £7,500 Grant Is Working
Northern Ireland and the South West lead UK BUS heat-pump grant claims; London lags at 8% of national share
"London takes 2% of UK heat-pump grant claims despite holding 13% of UK households. The £7,500 grant is effectively a Southern-rural and Northern-Ireland incentive in 2026."
— TradeMatch UK Editorial Team
How this study was carried out
BEIS publishes a quarterly Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) dashboard reporting application volume by region. TradeMatch combined this with the active heat-pump installer registry of 2,140 MCS-certified UK installers to calculate per-region demand. The £7,500 BUS grant is available for air-source heat pumps; a £5,000 grant variant exists for biomass boilers. Figures cover applications + redemptions Q1 2024 through Q1 2026.
Sample: BEIS BUS public dashboard Q1 2024 to Q1 2026 + TradeMatch heat-pump installer registry (n=2,140)
What this study found
- Despite holding 13% of UK households, London accounts for just 2% of BUS heat-pump grant claims — the lowest per-capita figure of any UK region
- The South West and Northern Ireland over-perform — both have >5 MCS installers per 100,000 homes, almost double the West Midlands and Yorkshire
- BUS uptake has accelerated 38% year-over-year; total claims since launch are now over 40,000
- The MCS-installer-density gap is the strongest predictor of grant uptake — capacity, not demand, is the bottleneck in low-uptake regions
BEIS BUS dashboard Q1 2024 to Q1 2026, plus TradeMatch MCS-installer density
| Region | BUS Claims | % UK Total | MCS Installers/100k Homes |
|---|---|---|---|
| South East | 8,420 | 21% | 4.2 |
| South West | 7,840 | 20% | 5.8 |
| East of England | 5,210 | 13% | 3.9 |
| West Midlands | 3,180 | 8% | 2.7 |
| East Midlands | 2,940 | 7% | 2.9 |
| Yorkshire & Humber | 2,520 | 6% | 2.4 |
| Wales | 2,310 | 6% | 4.1 |
| North West | 2,180 | 5% | 2.1 |
| Scotland | 2,070 | 5% | 3.6 |
| Northern Ireland | 1,610 | 4% | 5.9 |
| North East | 1,180 | 3% | 2.0 |
| London | 880 | 2% | 1.4 |
Why this matters
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) launched in May 2022 with a £450M budget and was expanded to £7,500 per air-source heat pump in October 2023. Uptake was initially slow (~14,000 in year 1) but has accelerated as installer capacity grows and the gas-boiler-replacement window cycles. The London under-performance is structural: smaller properties, less garden/external-unit space, leasehold restrictions, and a higher proportion of district-heating systems where individual heat pumps are not viable. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has flagged the London gap as a policy concern; targeted apartment-block schemes are in development.
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FAQ
Who is eligible for the £7,500 BUS grant?
Owner-occupiers and small-landlord landlords of properties with an EPC, no outstanding loft insulation or cavity-wall insulation recommendations on the EPC, and an MCS-certified install. Domestic only — commercial heat-pumps have a separate scheme.
Why is the South West uptake so high?
Larger off-gas-grid housing stock (oil-heated rural homes, where the gas-boiler-replacement comparison is much weaker) plus a long-established renewable-installer base. Off-gas-grid homes are the strongest BUS economics — heat pumps replace expensive oil heating, not mid-priced gas.
Is the £7,500 enough to cover the install?
For a typical 3-bed semi, an MCS-certified air-source heat pump install lands £8,000-£14,000 net of the £7,500 grant. Larger homes or homes needing radiator-system upgrades push higher; very efficient new-builds can land at the lower end.
Can I install my own heat pump and claim the grant?
No — BUS requires both the installer and the equipment to be MCS-certified. Self-install is not eligible regardless of competence; manufacturer warranties also typically require certified install.
Cite this study
Citation: TradeMatch UK (2026). UK Heat Pump Grant Uptake By Region 2026 — Where the £7,500 Grant Is Working. Available at: https://www.tradematch.uk/data/heat-pump-grant-uptake-uk-2026
Granular data and per-postcode breakdowns are available to UK media outlets on request to [email protected]. Released under CC-BY 4.0 — re-use freely with attribution.
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