09 October 2025
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Nesta, the UK’s research and innovation foundation, is calling on heating engineers across Britain to use its Start at Home initiative to fit a government-funded heat pump in their homes. The aim is to give them the confidence and know-how to install heat pumps for customers and ensure they are ready for Britain’s changing heating needs.
Heating engineers who are interested in a funded heat pump can find and register for a Start at Home scheme that works for them at: startathome.org.uk.
The programme is being rolled out in partnership with a wide range of providers across England, Scotland and Wales.
Heat pumps are more efficient than gas boilers, producing three to four times more heat from the same amount of energy input. This means that in addition to being greener, for households on the right energy tariff that install a heat pump, they can lower energy bills. Heat pumps also tend to require less maintenance and last much longer, keeping homes warm for years. Some 360,000 homes in Britain are already heated by them.
As part of Government targets to cut greenhouse gases by 2050, the Climate Change Committee projects that Britain needs to install roughly 450,000 heat pumps in existing homes per year by 2030. To do this, we'll need roughly 38,000 more installers trained and confident to install heat pumps before 2030. A previous survey by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero revealed that only 27% of newly trained heating installers completed a heat pump installation within a year of training, due partly to a lack of confidence in the technology and the installation process.
Nesta is on a mission to address this. Heating engineers across England, Scotland and Wales are being urged to upgrade their home heating with the latest technology and expert support, to learn the ropes before fitting heat pumps for customers, all while cutting costs and paperwork.
Madeleine Gabriel, Nesta’s Director of Sustainable Future, said: “As more and more households look to switch their home heating, it will be all hands to the pump – and we want to help ensure that Britain’s heating workforce is ready to respond. Although lots of heating engineers are curious about heat pumps, many rarely get the chance to see one, let alone install one. The ‘Start at Home’ scheme changes that by beginning where it makes most sense – at home. Our message to all heating engineers is simple: secure your future by getting hands-on with the tech with installation yourself.”
The offer for heating engineers across Britain follows a successful Nesta pilot, in partnership with the Scottish and Northern Ireland Plumbing Employers’ Federation, which involved providing heat pumps and expert support to heating engineers in Scotland. The pilot found that 100% of the 18 participants who installed a heat pump reported increased understanding of system design and installation, with 72% of these describing the gain as substantial, citing improved technical fluency and troubleshooting skills. 61% of participants who installed a heat pump at home reported a large boost in confidence in the technology and in talking to customers about heat pumps (66%).
Eric MacRae, a pilot participant, added: “I have confidence now that I've got one running in my own property that I have 24/7 experience of. Instead of giving people a spiel, I can now speak from personal experience of using it myself. It’s giving me an extra edge, and I feel that I can emphasise more of the advantages than I previously would have been able to.”
Scott, 49, Cumbria, installed his heat pump in June through Vaillant, in partnership with VitoEnergy and EcoFuture. He said: “I believe in the technology and it’s much easier to promote them if you have one in your own home. You learn more about how to set them up so they are as efficient as possible. I’d say go for it if you’re an engineer that isn’t sure about enrolling - it really does help future installs and explaining to customers with confidence about how they work."
Nesta is providing up to £2 million in funding to companies that supply heat pumps for heating engineers to install in their own homes. Normally, installation companies are not reimbursed right away when they provide a heat pump through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme in England and Wales or the Home Energy Scotland Grant. Nesta’s funding will act as a repayable financial buffer, covering costs of up to £500,000 per company, until these companies receive their reimbursement.
Start at Home will help engineers to get on the path to MCS certification, the UK’s quality mark for smaller scale renewable energy systems like heat pumps and solar panels. MCS, which stands for Microgeneration Certification Scheme, sets the standards that consumers should expect from a certified installer and their products.
www.nesta.org.uk
