Is there a grant for air to air heat pumps?
Yes, since April 2026, and it is worth 2,500 pounds. But the conditions rule out the way most London homes actually use air conditioning, so it is worth reading them before you count on it.
- REFCOM certified, REF1025662
- Daikin registered installer
The short answer
Yes. Since 28 April 2026 the Boiler Upgrade Scheme in England and Wales has paid 2,500 pounds towards an air to air heat pump, which is the technical name for air conditioning that heats. The conditions are strict. It is for homes only, not business premises. The heat pump has to be able to meet the whole property's space heating demand, and it has to replace the heating system that is there now, so a gas boiler cannot stay, even as a backup. The grant is applied for by an MCS certified installer, not by you, and there is one grant per property. That means the common London job, one or two units in a loft room or an office with the gas boiler staying, does not qualify. A whole home switch away from a boiler or old electric heating can.
The conditions, from the regulations
These come from the amending regulations that opened the scheme to air to air heat pumps, and from Ofgem, which runs it. They are the rules your installer applies against.
| Condition | What it means in practice |
|---|---|
| Homes only | An air to air heat pump is not eligible in a non residential building. Shops, offices and other business premises are out. |
| It must meet the full space heating demand | The system has to be big enough to heat the whole property, not one room of it. That usually means an indoor unit in each room that needs heat. |
| It must replace the existing heating | It has to replace the heat generating parts of the system there now. A heat pump fitted alongside a gas or oil boiler that stays in place is not funded, even if the boiler is kept only as a backup. |
| Electric extras can stay | Supplementary appliances that do not burn fossil fuel are allowed alongside it, such as an electric heater or an electric hot water cylinder. |
| An MCS certified installer applies | The grant is claimed by the installer on your behalf, and only an MCS certified installer can do it. |
| One grant per property | If the property has had a Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant before, it cannot have another. |
| England and Wales | The scheme does not cover Scotland or Northern Ireland. |
From the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2026, Ofgem's scheme page and the government's November 2025 consultation response. Rules change; Ofgem's guidance is the current word.
The catch for most London homes
Most people looking at air conditioning want it in one or two rooms, usually a loft conversion, a bedroom or a home office, with the gas boiler carrying on as before. The government's own response to the consultation said heat pumps installed alongside existing fossil fuel heating would not be funded, and the regulations require the heat pump to replace the existing system. That job gets no grant.
Who it does suit
The grant is aimed at homes without a wet heating system: flats and small houses heated by storage heaters, panel heaters or an old warm air system, where putting in radiators and an air to water heat pump would be a major job. The government said when it opened the scheme to air to air heat pumps that it had homes with this kind of dry heating particularly in mind.
It also suits a home where the boiler is being taken out anyway and the owner would rather heat with air than with radiators. Hot water then usually has to come from something else, because most air to air heat pumps heat air, not water. An electric cylinder can stay or be fitted alongside it. A few models also heat water, and the government has said those qualify for the same grant.
Before you count on it
Ask for the installer's MCS number
Only an MCS certified installer can claim the grant, so ask any installer quoting for a grant funded job for their MCS certification before assuming the 2,500 pounds is in the price. MCS publishes a search of certified installers.
Ask how the whole house will be heated
A design that meets the full space heating demand is a different job from a unit in one room. Ask to see how the heat loss of each room was worked out and which unit covers it, rather than accepting one large unit in the hall.
Ask about hot water
If the boiler is going, something else has to make hot water. Make sure the quote says what, and what it costs, because on most air to air systems it is not part of the heat pump.
Check the planning limits
A whole home system can mean more than one outdoor unit, and the permitted development rules limit how many a house can have without an application. Our planning guide covers the limits.
If you do not qualify
For one room, the case for a heat pump does not depend on a grant. Against an electric heater it delivers several units of heat for each unit of electricity, which is spelled out in our winter heating guide with the manufacturers' published figures. And it cools the same room in summer, which no grant has ever been needed to justify.
Our prices are shown without any grant taken off, so what you see is what a standard install costs.
The ranges this applies to
Every price is fully installed and includes the unit, the installation, the electrical work and VAT.
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