Baxi and Worcester Bosch welcome changes that were seen as barriers to heat pump deployment.

Announced by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government last November, changes to permitted development rights for air source heat pumps in England came into force on 29 May 2025.

As one of the key technologies expected to help decarbonise heating in the UK, industry and government have been collaborating to help identify and resolve barriers to deployment of heat pumps. This important step will make heat pump installations simpler, cutting red tape in the vast majority of situations.

Relevant legislation has been made in The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) (Amendment) Order 2025. Key changes which will now fall under permitted development include:

  • ASHP can be installed within 1m of a property boundary
  • The size limit of the ASHP has increased from 0.6m3 to 1.5m3 for dwellings
  • Two ASHPs are permitted for detached dwellings
  • ASHPs can also be used for cooling, meaning air-air heat pumps can now also benefit from PDR.

The legislation makes reference to the recently updated Microgeneration Certification Scheme Planning Standard (MCS 020 a) for the Air Source Heat Pump Sound Calculation.

Different arrangements remain in place in the other devolved administrations, although it is noteworthy that the Welsh government are currently consulting upon similar changes which we hope will be bought into effect as soon as possible.

Jeff House, Director of External Affairs and Policy at Baxi, stated: “This is a good positive step and something we have been pushing for through the Heat Pump Association for some time. As we look forward to the unveiling of the Warm Homes Plan we hope that other barriers to heat pump deployment, such as the spark gap, are addressed in short order."

Martyn Bridges, Director of External Affairs at Worcester Bosch, added: "We think this is a positive move as most heat pumps today are almost silent, compared to the ones available 14 years ago when this planning requirement was first introduced.  The 1m distance was always a “blunt sword” as this wasn’t measured from the neighbouring house, but the boundary fence. The neighbouring house could have been 4m away from the boundary and therefore oblivious to any noise - deeming the required distance obsolete.

"It is thought that as many as 25% of installations couldn’t meet these original requirements, so planning permission had to be sought. Now we are optimistic that removing these barriers should enable a far easier installation route and therefore assist with the increase of heat pump intake."