Heat Pump Installers Liverpool: MCS and £7,500 Grant

The big question for a Liverpool heat pump is space. Terraces make up 37.9% of the city's homes, and many have a small back yard rather than a garden. A heat pump can still fit, but the outdoor unit needs clear air around it and a sensible spot for the pipework into the house.

Semis and detached houses in the southern suburbs usually have more room and are easier installs.

Liverpool at a glance

Terraced homes: 37.9% of Liverpool households (78,552) live in a terraced house, against 30.7% in semis and 8.2% in detached homes. Source
Flats: About 23.2% of households live in a flat: 17.2% in purpose-built blocks and 3.9% in converted or shared houses, with the rest in converted buildings or above shops. Source
How homes are heated: 77.8% of Liverpool households heat with mains gas only and 9.8% with electricity only. 0.5% use a heat network, 986 homes use tank or bottled gas and 111 use oil only. Source
Local grant: Liverpool City Council was awarded £5.8m of Warm Homes: Local Grant funding to improve about 450 homes over three years. Year two (April 2026 to March 2027) is oversubscribed; interest can be registered for year three from April 2027. Source
Heritage status: UNESCO removed Liverpool's Maritime Mercantile City from the World Heritage List on 21 July 2021, but the city's conservation areas and listed buildings still carry planning controls. Source
Energy ratings: About 40% of homes with an EPC in Liverpool are rated band D or below (median score 70, band C), against 47% across England. Based on certificates lodged in the 10 years to March 2025. Source

Planning rules

Most air source heat pumps on a house are permitted development, up to 1.5 cubic metres and at least a metre from the boundary. In a conservation area the unit can't face a highway, and a listed building needs consent.

Liverpool lost its World Heritage status in 2021, but its conservation areas and many listed buildings remain. Check your street on the council's planning map before the survey.

Getting the system right

A good installer does a room-by-room heat loss calculation and sizes radiators to run at low flow temperatures. Solid-walled terraces lose more heat, so insulation may come first.

You'll need space for a hot water cylinder. In a terrace that's often where the old airing cupboard was.

Grants

Liverpool homeowners can get £7,500 off an air or ground source heat pump through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, and there is no income test. Lower-income households in eligible homes may also get help through Liverpool's Warm Homes: Local Grant, though year two funding is already oversubscribed.

Liverpool homes and what they need

Victorian and Edwardian red-brick terraces

Mount the unit on a wall bracket in the yard if floor space is tight. Keep it away from the neighbour's bedroom window to avoid noise complaints.

Interwar and post-war semis

A side passage is often the best spot. Filled cavity walls and a decent loft insulation make these homes well suited to a heat pump.

City-centre apartments and converted houses

Converted flats rarely have a place for an outdoor unit. Ask about shared systems with your freeholder.

Areas covered

Engineers who cover Liverpool work across areas including Anfield, Walton, Wavertree, Allerton, Childwall, West Derby, Aigburth, Woolton, Garston and Toxteth.

View Liverpool on Google Maps

Questions people in Liverpool ask

Will my bills go up with a heat pump?

It depends on your tariff and how well the system is designed. A well-designed system on a heat pump tariff often costs about the same as gas or less.

How noisy is the outdoor unit?

A current model running steadily is quieter than most people expect, often a low hum from the yard. In a tight terraced yard, ask the installer to show the noise calculation they used for the permitted development check.

Will every radiator in a Liverpool terrace have to go?

Usually not. The heat loss survey shows which rooms need a bigger radiator, and in many homes it's only two or three.

Sources

Also nearby: Heat pump installation in Warrington, Heat pump installation in Manchester, Heat pump installation in Preston, Heat pump installation in Bolton

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