The Committee on Climate Change (CCC) is pushing the UK government to set the full definition of the Future Homes Standard now rather than in 2024, with the details included in the planned changes to the 2020 Building Regulations Part F (Ventilation) and Part L (Conservation of fuel and power). CCC argue in a recent letter the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government that this would create market certainty. The Future Homes Standard would commit builders of new homes, from 2025 onwards, to ensure that homes were future-proofed with low carbon heating and world-leading levels of energy efficiency.
CCC also state their belief that limiting space heating demand to PassivHaus levels (15 kWh/m2/year) by 2025 is achievable and highly beneficial but that upskilling the workforce needs to start now to ensure the building industry is ready for the change. CCC would like all proposals to jointly consider building fabric efficiency, overheating and ventilation when retrofitting or building new homes.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government is currently reviewing feedback from its recent consultation on the 2020 Building Regulations, which finished on 7 February. The Ministry sees the 2020 regulations as a part way to the 2025 Future Homes Standard, potentially achieving the same fabric performance but not preventing the connection of new build homes to the gas grid until 2025. The Ministry anticipates that the installation of heat pumps, particularly air-to-water (such as an Air Source Heat Pump or ASHP) and air-to-air heat pumps, will play a major role in delivering low carbon heat for homes built to the Future Homes Standard.
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