The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published a post-implementation review of the Energy Performance of Buildings (England and Wales) Regulations 2012 on 2 April 20261. The report covers the five-year period from January 2018 to January 2023 and applies to England and Wales1.
The review was published, in the department's words, to establish whether and to what extent the 2012 regulations have achieved their original objectives, to assess whether those objectives remain appropriate and the extent to which they could be achieved with a system which imposes less regulation1. It follows an earlier implementation report covering January 2013 to January 2018, which was published in May 20201.
The department states that a consultation on reforms to the Energy Performance of Buildings regime was published in December 2024, in part to address the findings of this post-implementation review, with a partial response published in January 20261. The review does not set out what the partial response contained, and the specific measures decided or still under consideration have not been reported in the documents published alongside it1.
"A consultation on reforms to the Energy Performance of Buildings regime was published in December 2024, in part to address the findings of this post-implementation review, with a partial response published in January 2026"
| Item | Date |
|---|---|
| Consultation on reforms to the EPB regime | December 20241 |
| Partial response to that consultation | January 20261 |
| Previous implementation report (January 2013 to January 2018) | May 20201 |
| This post-implementation review (January 2018 to January 2023) | 2 April 20261 |
Why it matters for households
Energy performance certificates sit behind much of what a household encounters when a home changes hands, is let or has energy work carried out, so the rules governing them shape the paperwork and the evidence base attached to a property. A post-implementation review is the formal check on whether those rules are still doing what they were meant to do, and whether the same objectives could be met with less regulation1. For a householder, the practical significance lies in the direction the regime takes next: the December 2024 consultation was framed in part as a response to this review's findings, and a partial response has already been issued1. The review itself covers England and Wales only, so the position in Scotland and Wales differs where powers are devolved1. The published documents do not set out the review's conclusions on individual requirements, so what changes, if any, follow for certificates, assessments or the cost of compliance has not been reported1.
What happens next
The partial response to the December 2024 consultation was published in January 20261. The documents published with the review do not state when the remaining parts of the response will be issued, and no further dates have been reported1.