The average gas boiler costs a household £1,200 a year in fuel bills. A heat pump can halve that. But the upfront price, typically £7,000 to £13,000 installed, stops most people even looking. That is where public funding matters, and where Scotland and Wales are now pulling ahead of England.
A report from Nesta, the UK innovation agency, compares the three nations’ heat pump support programmes. As reported by Nesta, Wales’s Nest scheme offers up to £9,000 for a heat pump, plus free insulation and a home energy assessment. Scotland’s Warmer Homes Scotland programme provides up to £7,500, again with an assessment. England’s Boiler Upgrade Scheme offers £7,500, but no assessment, no insulation top-up, and a far more restrictive application process.
Who qualifies, and who doesn’t
Wales and Scotland target low-income households and those off the gas grid. In England, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme is open to all owner-occupiers, but the grant is fixed at £7,500 regardless of income. The catch: English applicants must already have a well-insulated home to meet minimum efficiency standards. Many older solid-wall properties fail that test. Scottish and Welsh programmes pay for the insulation first, then the heat pump. English households must find the insulation money themselves, typically £4,000 to £8,000 for solid walls.
Ofgem data shows the Boiler Upgrade Scheme has paid out only 60% of its allocated budget in the first year. Nesta’s analysis suggests the lack of upfront assessment and insulation support is a major reason. Homeowners apply, get rejected, and don’t come back.
What it costs a typical 3-bed semi
Take a 1970s semi-detached house in Manchester, currently on a gas boiler using 12,000 kWh a year. A heat pump installation costs about £10,000 after the Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant. If the walls are uninsulated, the heat pump will run inefficiently, pushing annual running costs to £700 instead of the expected £500. The payback period stretches from 7 years to 12. In Scotland, the same household would get a free assessment, cavity-wall insulation (cost covered), and the heat pump grant. Total out-of-pocket: zero. In Wales, the same again, with up to £1,500 more grant headroom.
Energy Saving Trust figures confirm heat pumps in well-insulated homes save £400–£600 a year versus gas. In poorly insulated homes, the saving drops to £150–£250. The Scottish and Welsh approach removes the insulation barrier first. England’s does not.
But the UK government has its own plan
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has said it will review the Boiler Upgrade Scheme in 2025. Officials have hinted at raising the grant to £9,000 and adding an insulation component. But no date has been set. Meanwhile, the Clean Heat Market Mechanism, which fines boiler manufacturers if they don’t sell enough heat pumps, starts in April 2025. That will push up boiler prices by an estimated £120 per unit, according to the Heat Pump Association. English homeowners face a double bind: higher boiler costs and no insulation support, while Scots and Welsh households get both.
The devolved nations are not perfect. Scotland’s scheme has waiting lists of up to six months. Wales’s Nest programme is means-tested to a degree that excludes many middle-income families. But on the core metric, getting heat pumps into homes that can use them, both outperform England’s approach. Nesta’s report puts Scotland’s heat pump installation rate per 1,000 households at 4.2, versus England’s 2.8. Wales is at 3.5.
What English homeowners can do now
If you live in England and want a heat pump, get an insulation survey first. The Energy Company Obligation (ECO4) scheme can fund solid-wall and loft insulation for low-income households. Apply through your energy supplier. If you are on a standard tariff, you can also switch to a heat pump tariff, Octopus Energy’s Cosy tariff, for example, offers off-peak rates that cut running costs by 15–20%. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is open until March 2027, but the budget is finite. Apply early. For those in Scotland or Wales, contact Home Energy Scotland or the Nest helpline directly. The assessment is free. The grant is guaranteed if you qualify. The only risk is the waiting list.
Frequently Asked Questions
Technically yes, but the heat pump will be less efficient and your running costs higher. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme does not require insulation, but the installer must confirm the property can reach a minimum efficiency standard. Many older homes fail. You may need to fund insulation separately, often through the ECO4 scheme if you qualify on income grounds.
Both devolved administrations have chosen to prioritise heat pump adoption as part of their net-zero targets, using their own budgets to top up the UK-wide grant. Scotland and Wales also bundle insulation and assessments into the same programme, which reduces barriers. England's Boiler Upgrade Scheme was designed as a flat-rate grant with no wrap-around services, partly to keep costs predictable.
