MCS confirmed in February 2026 that the UK has passed 250,000 certified heat pump installations — every unit signed off under the Microgeneration Certification Scheme since records began in 2009. 2025 was the strongest year yet, with the Boiler Upgrade Scheme funding a large share of installs.

Momentum is real. The question we get asked in London, though, is narrower: will one work in a Victorian terrace?

The honest answer

Usually yes, but the honest version has conditions attached, and any installer who skips them is not doing you a favour.

  • Heat loss has to come down first. A heat pump delivers heat at a lower flow temperature than a gas boiler. In a leaky, uninsulated house that means either an underperforming system or radiators the size of a wall. Loft insulation and draught-proofing are not optional preliminaries — they are what makes the system work.
  • Radiators often need upsizing. Lower flow temperature means more surface area for the same output. Budget for it.
  • You need somewhere to put it. An outdoor unit plus, usually, a hot water cylinder. In a small terrace the cylinder is frequently the harder constraint.
  • Flats are a different problem. External unit siting, freeholder consent and communal systems all get in the way. This is where the newer £2,500 grant for air-to-air heat pumps and heat batteries becomes genuinely relevant.

The money

The Boiler Upgrade Scheme contributes £7,500 towards an air source or ground source heat pump, is not means tested, and is claimed by your MCS-certified installer so it comes off the quote rather than arriving later. Eligible off-gas-grid properties can access £9,000 under a temporary uplift running to 31 March 2027. The scheme is confirmed to 2030.

The standard condition is a valid EPC with its insulation recommendations addressed — which is where most applications actually stall.

Sequence, not shopping list

Assessment, then fabric, then heating. Doing it in that order is what makes the grant claimable and the system effective. Doing it backwards is how people end up disappointed with a technology that was not the problem.

If you are considering a heat pump, start with the certificate. Book an EPC online — £69, lodged within 48 hours of the visit.