The government has confirmed ‘the vast majority’ of new-build homes will be fitted with rooftop solar panels as default. Further proposals, which will be included in the Future Homes Standard to be published in the Autumn, include the installation of low-carbon heating such as heat pumps.
Building regulations will be amended to explicitly promote solar for the first time, which the government says will be subject to practical limits and with flexibility in place for new homes surrounded by trees or with lots of shade overhead.
Energy secretary Ed Miliband said of the changes:
“Solar panels can save people hundreds of pounds off their energy bills, so it is just common sense for new homes to have them fitted as standard. So many people just don’t understand why this doesn’t already happen. With our plans, it will. Today marks a monumental step in unleashing this rooftop revolution as part of our Plan for Change, and means new homeowners will get lower bills with clean home-grown power.”
The Countryside charity CPRE welcomed the news, with campaigns lead Jackie Copley commenting:
“This is a very promising sign from the government. CPRE has long campaigned for widespread rooftop solar, which would harness the potential of the UK’s roofs to generate huge amounts of clean and truly sustainable energy.
“With rooftop solar, meaningful climate action does not come at the expense of a thriving and beautiful countryside. This is in contrast to mega solar farms, which damage natural landscapes and productive farmland.”
Neil Jefferson, chief executive at the Home Builders Federation, said the move would help the industry meet ‘challenging’ carbon reduction targets – as long as the changes don’t introduce unnecessary delays to housebuilding.
He said:
“We welcome recognition from Government that there needs to be flexibility around the number of panels on roofs in some locations, to reflect orientation and house design. We need to ensure the process to agree the number of panels in such locations is workable and not overly bureaucratic such that it does not delay attempts to increase housing supply.”
Last week, the government relaxed planning rules to make it easier for homeowners to install heat pumps. Until the change, homeowners needed planning permission to install one of the clean energy pumps within one metre of a neighbour’s property, making it difficult for owners of the millions of terraced homes in England. According to figures from the energy provider Octopus, over a third of people who had ordered a heat pump were discouraged or dropped out of the installation due to the planning applications.
Aadil Qureshi, co-founder and CEO of Heat Geek, said solar panels and heat pumps will save homeowners hundreds of pounds in energy bills. He added:
“The simplification of planning rules will help millions of homeowners, particularly in normal family homes in towns and cities, take advantage of this technology.”
Trevor Hutchings, chief executive of the Renewable Energy Association (REA), said the growth of solar power has been one of the UK’s biggest renewable energy success stories.
He commented:
“Today’s announcement – which the REA has long campaigned for – takes this one step further – not only enabling thousands of future homeowners to experience the benefits of affordable and clean power, but supercharging growth in the British renewable energy industry and driving forward our energy transition.”
