Heat pumps

From 1 December 2011 the installation of an air source heat pump on domestic premises is considered to be permitted development, not needing an application for planning permission, provided ALL the limits and conditions listed below are met.

These permitted development rights apply to the installation, alteration or replacement of an air source heat pump on a house or block of flats, or within the curtilage (garden or grounds) of a house or block of flats, including on a building within that curtilage. A block of flats must consist wholly of flats (e.g. should not also contain commercial premises).

Limits to be met:

• Development is permitted only if the air source heat pump installation complies with the Microgeneration Certification Scheme Planning Standards (MCS 020)¹ or equivalent standards. Read more about the scheme².
• The volume of the air source heat pump’s outdoor compressor unit (including housing) must not exceed 0.6 cubic metres
• Only the first installation of an air source heat pump would be permitted development, and only if there is no existing wind turbine on a building or within the curtilage of that property. Additional wind turbines or air source heat pumps at the same property requires an application for planning permission
• All parts of the air source heat pump must be at least one metre from the property boundary
• Installations on pitched roofs are not permitted development. If installed on a flat roof all parts of the air source heat pump must be at least one metre from the external edge of that roof
• Permitted development rights do not apply for installations within the curtilage of a Listed Building or within a site designated as a Scheduled Monument
• On land within a Conservation Area or World Heritage Site the air source heat pump must not be installed on a wall or roof which fronts a highway or be nearer to any highway which bounds the property than any part of the building
• On land that is not within a Conservation Area or World Heritage Site, the air source heat pump must not be installed on any part of a wall above the level of the ground floor storey if that wall fronts a highway.

Please note: ‘permitted development’ rights may be removed through a planning condition, Article 4 Direction or other restriction.

In addition, the following conditions must also be met. The air source heat pump must be:

• Used solely for heating purposes
• Removed as soon as reasonably practicable when it is no longer needed for microgeneration
• Sited, so far as is practicable, to minimise its effect on the external appearance of the building and its effect on the amenity of the area.

You may wish to discuss with the Local Planning Authority for your area whether all of these limits and conditions will be met.

Find your local planning authority ^{(https://www.planningportal.co.uk/find-your-local-planning-authority)}

1. https://www.microgenerationcertification.org/mcs-standards/installer-standards/
2. https://www.planningportal.co.uk/permission/common-projects/heat-pumps/the-microgeneration-certification-scheme