The Draft Heat Strategy for Wales was published in the summer of 2023 for consultation, according to the Welsh Government's Heat Strategy for Wales Action Plan, published in July 20241. The Action Plan states that it was published alongside the final Heat Strategy for Wales and the Welsh Government's response to the consultation in the summer of 20241.
The strategy sets a target of net zero heat in Wales by 2050 across all sectors1. It is built on a tiered structure, with the vision, objectives and policies set in the strategy and the next tier of actions set out in the Action Plan1. The Action Plan covers detailed actions related to the objectives and policies for the enabling framework, while responsibility for policies and actions for housing, businesses, industry and the public sector sits with the relevant Welsh Government policy teams1.
The strategy's objectives are grouped under five headings: the enabling framework, energy networks, homes, businesses, industry and public services1. Under the homes heading, the objectives include a clear regulatory framework supporting net zero homes across rented, owner-occupied and social housing, and homes that are thermally efficient and served mainly by heat pumps, with homeowners understanding how to operate their systems1. A further objective is that low carbon heat solutions will be affordable to install and affordable to operate1. Under energy networks, the objectives cover flexible and secure electricity networks, heat networks as a reliable and efficient provider of low carbon heat in suitable areas, and support for low carbon hydrogen where it enables a sustainable and just transition, for example at localised hydrogen hubs1.
The Action Plan lists existing Welsh Government programmes against the strategy's themes, including the Optimised Retrofit Programme for social housing decarbonisation and fuel poverty, the Warm Homes Programme supporting fuel-poor households with energy efficiency funding and advice, and Ynni Cymru, a programme to support smart, local energy systems1. On delivery, the Action Plan states that implementing the policies will become part of core Welsh Government activity, integrated into existing programmes and areas of responsibility, with no specific delivery programme board or task and finish group established1.
"The Draft Heat Strategy for Wales was published in the summer of 2023 for consultation."
Why it matters for households
The strategy's objectives set the direction for how Welsh homes are expected to be heated, with heat pumps named as the main technology and a whole building approach covering thermal efficiency as well as the heating system itself1. For a household, that points to decisions about insulation and the heating system being treated together rather than separately. The strategy also states that low carbon heat solutions should be affordable both to install and to operate, an objective rather than a commitment on costs1. The Action Plan records that the Welsh Government plans to prepare a consultation on permitted development rights, with air source heat pumps forming part of it, following a review of the existing evidence and engagement with expert stakeholders1. Planning constraints on heat pumps are therefore under review, but no changes had been made at the point the Action Plan was published1. The strategy also commits to engaging households to improve understanding of low carbon heat and to ensuring advice through the Warm Homes Nest scheme is clear on low carbon heating options1.
What happens next
The Action Plan sets out near-term steps including aggregating Local Area Energy Plan findings into a regional and national picture, uploading key data from those plans to DataMapWales, and using their outputs to inform delivery programmes1. A consultation on permitted development rights for heat pumps is planned1. The Action Plan does not give dates for these steps1.
Sources1 cited
- Heat Strategy for Wales, gov.wales