The Future Homes and Building Standards is a government initiative to improve the energy efficiency of homes from 2025 onwards.
In the UK, our homes are one of the biggest contributors to carbon emissions. In fact, the UK’s built environment is responsible for around 30% of our greenhouse gas emissions. If we can take steps to reduce this, the strategy of becoming Net Zero by 2050 is achievable.
Who is affected by the Regulations?
The new Future Homes and Building Standards will initially apply to new builds which are built from 2025. The reason for targeting new builds is that it’s cheaper and easier to install energy efficiency measures and low-carbon heating when homes are being built, rather than retrofitting them afterwards.
But existing homes may also be caught by the regulations. If, for example, you want to extend your home, or convert your home, then you may have to comply with the new regulations.
How to comply with the Regulations
The overarching aim of these new standards is that all new homes will achieve a EPC rating of C or above by 2035.
To do that, the focus is on reducing heat waste, and improving the efficiency and insulation in homes.
That means using improved heating and hot water systems as a starting point. So you might now find new builds without gas central heating. Instead, they’ll have a low carbon alternative like a heat pump, or electric heaters.
During the consultation for these regulations, the government found no practical way to allow the installation of fossil fuel boilers which would also deliver significant carbon savings. They do not think that gas boilers, hybrid heat pumps, or hydrogen-ready boilers will meet the new standards.
There’s also an emphasis on ‘fabric efficiency’, which improves the insulation of homes so that less heat is lost and wasted. During the consultation, the government investigated how it could improve homes with better walls, floors, roofs, triple glazing, and improved thermal bridging. Some of those measures may be implemented. But the only cost effective and practical improvement that could be made to the standard was an improvement in airtightness, which is matched to an extract ventilation system to avoid mould and damp.
So the focus for new builds will be creating well-sealed homes with adequate ventilation.
What you need to do
The people that need to be most aware of the detail of the Future Homes and Building Standards are the housebuilders, architects, and tradesmen who do the work.
As a homeowner, your role is to check the documentation, and make sure you keep compliant with the standards if you renovate or extend the property.
When you move into a new build, you’ll receive a Completion Certificate. Make sure you keep hold of this. It’s your proof that all the building work that has been carried out under the new standards and approved by an inspector, and you’ll need to produce this document if and when you come to sell the house.
Otherwise, it’s just a case of enjoying your well-insulated new home, and all the savings you’ll make on your energy bills in the future!