Ian Rippin, CEO at MCS, comments on the latest BUS figures

“The latest government figures show the number of applications to the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) continues to rise, with 2,987 applications made in May. This is up 26% from the 2,380 applications in the previous month, which was itself an increase on the 2,138 applications made in March. It’s a trend that shows an increasing number of homeowners are taking advantage of the incentive, which provides £7,500 towards the installation of a heat pump and requires it to be MCS certified.

“In fact, when you compare the latest government BUS figures with those of last year, the results are even more encouraging. BUS applications in May 2024 were more than double May 2023, and when comparing Jan-May 2024 with the same period last year, applications are up by 71%.

“Heat pump data from the MCS Data Dashboard tells a similar story. There were almost 5,000 certified heat pump installations in May, bringing the average monthly heat pump installations for 2024 to 4,400. This is a 26% increase on the average monthly count for 2023 (which was itself a record-breaking year) and sets 2024 on track to be a record-breaking year for the technology.

“Government initiatives such as the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) are a critical part of the drive to make low-carbon heating more accessible and affordable. At a time when the UK’s transition to net-zero is a key issue in the build-up to the General Election in July, it’s great to see that homeowner confidence in home-grown energy is increasing.”

For near-real-time dynamic visualisations of the uptake of small-scale renewable technologies across the UK, view the MCS Data Dashboard here.