The Secretary of State has confirmed that the Boiler Upgrade Scheme will have a budget of £400 million for 2026 to 2027. The confirmation was published by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero on 1 April 20261.
The notice states that the scheme, which supports the installation of heat pumps and biomass systems, applies to England and Wales1. No breakdown of the £400 million by technology, region or quarter appears in the notice, and no figure for the number of grants the budget is expected to fund has been reported1.
"The Secretary of State confirms that the budget for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme for 2026 to 2027 will be £400 million."
The publication is titled as an approval to increase the budget, but it does not state the previous budget level, the size of any increase, or the date on which the new figure takes effect beyond the 2026 to 2027 financial year1. It also does not set out grant amounts per household, which are covered separately under how much the Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant is worth1.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Scheme | Boiler Upgrade Scheme |
| Budget confirmed | £400 million |
| Period | 2026 to 2027 |
| Coverage | England and Wales |
| Published | 1 April 2026 |
Why it matters for households
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is one of the main routes by which a household in England or Wales can offset part of the cost of replacing a fossil fuel heating system with a heat pump or biomass boiler. The confirmed £400 million sets the overall pot available for the 2026 to 2027 year, which is the pool from which individual grants are drawn1.
For a household considering a change of heating system, the practical effect is that the scheme is funded for the year ahead. The notice does not change who is eligible for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, nor does it alter the position for homes that currently have a gas boiler, which is addressed under whether a gas boiler affects eligibility1. Households in Scotland and Northern Ireland are outside the scope of this notice, which applies to England and Wales only1; separate arrangements are described under boiler and heating grants in Scotland and boiler and heating grants in Northern Ireland.
A funded budget does not by itself guarantee that a grant will be available at the point a household applies, since grants are allocated as installations proceed and the notice gives no allocation schedule1. The relationship between this scheme and other support, including ECO4 and the older Green Deal, is not addressed in the notice1.
What happens next
The budget applies to the 2026 to 2027 financial year1. No further dates, review points or allocation milestones are given in the notice, and no statement on the scheme's budget beyond 2027 has been reported1.