The UK must rapidly expand its heat pump workforce to meet the Government’s ambitious net zero target of 1.6 million installations per year by 2035, a new report warns.
According to the Heat Pump Association (HPA), the number of trained engineers needs to increase 13-fold within the next decade, from fewer than 10,000 today to an estimated 122,627 full-time workers. However, the country is already falling behind schedule.
To stay on track, the UK must train an average of 10,267 heat pump installers annually until 2035. Yet, in 2023, only 9,062 workers were trained—12% short of the target.
In the shorter term, the workforce must quadruple to 41,143 full-time equivalent workers by 2028 to meet the Government’s interim target of 600,000 heat pump installations that year. This milestone is crucial to achieving net zero by 2050.
Notably, the number of trained engineers must exceed the number of full-time roles, as many will continue installing gas boilers alongside heat pumps over the next decade.
Additionally, some workers will only be available part-time or will be absent due to factors such as illness, maternity leave, or holidays.
Although the UK is currently on course to meet its 2028 workforce target, concerns remain over whether future training goals will be reached.
Many potential trainees hesitate to enter the field due to uncertainty over long-term demand for heat pumps.
Charlotte Lee, chief executive of the HPA, emphasised that “urgent action” is needed to cut electricity costs—on which heat pumps rely—to strengthen consumer demand.
She also stressed the need for swift implementation of building regulations to ensure new homes are built with heat pumps instead of gas boilers.
The Future Homes and Buildings Standard, expected to be introduced this year, aims to improve energy efficiency and reduce the carbon footprint of homes. However, final details of the legislation are yet to be confirmed.
One of the biggest barriers to heat pump adoption is the high cost of electricity. Despite a £7,500 government grant available to most households until at least 2027, heat pumps remain a costly investment.
Electricity in the UK costs 3.9 times more than gas—24.50p per kWh for electricity versus 6.24p for gas, according to Ofgem.
This price disparity is largely due to green levies, which fund renewable energy projects and efficiency schemes, being placed predominantly on electricity bills rather than gas.
Experts, including Dr Jan Rosenow, an adviser to Ofgem and the International Energy Agency, argue that these levies should be shifted to general taxation or gas bills to make heat pumps more attractive to consumers.
The Government’s Clean Heat Market Mechanism, due in April, aims to push gas boiler manufacturers to install more heat pumps. However, critics argue that the quotas and penalties are too low to incentivise meaningful change.
Richard Hauxwell-Baldwin, head of policy at The MCS Foundation, called for long-term policies that make heat pumps the default option in new homes. He urged the Government to provide greater clarity to the market to support investment in clean heating solutions.
Despite the challenges, heat pump sales surged 63% in 2023, with nearly 100,000 units sold, according to the HPA. Consumers are increasingly considering heat pumps to lower long-term energy bills, improve home energy ratings, and reduce environmental impact.
While upfront costs remain high, installation costs are expected to decrease in the coming years as the industry scales up, making heat pumps cheaper, more efficient, and easier to install.
A spokesperson for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero stated that the Government is actively working with industry leaders to expand the workforce.
The Heat Training Grant has already trained nearly 5,500 engineers, with 6,000 training opportunities expected by April 2025.
