02 July 2026
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NHS trusts have a significant opportunity to use public funding to deliver low-carbon estate upgrades, according to planning and development consultancy Lichfields.
The Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme is supporting projects including heat pumps, solar PV and lower-carbon heating systems, but early planning and design work will be key to turning funding into deliverable projects.
Phase 4 of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme is supporting projects across the 2025/26 to 2027/28 financial years, with more than £816m allocated nationally. Around half of the funding has been awarded to NHS bodies.
The investment comes as the NHS works towards becoming the world’s first net zero health service for the emissions it directly controls by 2040. Energy use across the estate remains one of the main areas of focus, particularly where trusts are retrofitting existing hospital buildings while keeping services running.
Many of these projects will need early planning input, particularly where works involve new plant, heat pumps, solar panels, EV charging points or other infrastructure on live hospital sites.
Jonathan Standen, a Planning Director at Lichfields, said: “Funding through the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme is giving NHS trusts the chance to make real progress on lower-carbon estates. The next step is making sure those projects can be delivered smoothly on sites that are often complex, constrained and operational every day.
“Planning is not a barrier to that process, but it does need to be considered early. The right consent route, early engagement with the local planning authority and a clear understanding of site constraints can make a significant difference to how quickly projects move forward.
“For trusts, the strongest position is usually one where the planning strategy is developed alongside the technical and funding work, rather than after the main decisions have already been made.”
The North East has received almost £79m through Phase 4 of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme. Around £20m of this has been awarded to Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust to support decarbonisation work across three hospital sites at Wansbeck, Cramlington and Hexham.
Across the three sites, existing heating systems are being replaced with a mix of ground-source, air-source and water-source heat pumps. Lichfields is advising appointed contractor Dalkia on the planning implications of the upgrades.
At Wansbeck General Hospital in Ashington, Lichfields is also seeking consent for a scheme that would use ground-source heat pumps to draw on warm water from historic coal workings beneath the hospital, linked to the former Woodhorn Colliery.
Jonathan explained: “The Wansbeck project is a good example of how former industrial infrastructure can be used to support modern healthcare facilities. It also shows why each site needs its own planning strategy. These are not standard projects that can simply be lifted from one estate to another.
“Trusts are under pressure to reduce emissions while continuing to provide critical services. Good planning can help them do both, by making sure the practical issues are worked through early and the right route to consent is identified.”
Lichfields has previously supported carbon reduction work at North Tyneside Hospital, where a £22m scheme was delivered in 2021. The project included large-scale heat pumps, boiler upgrades and a solar PV installation with an output of around 975kW. It is estimated to have reduced CO₂ emissions by 75%, saving around 3,470 tonnes of CO₂ a year and approximately £500,000 in annual energy costs.
As more NHS decarbonisation projects move from feasibility and funding into delivery, close working between trusts, delivery partners, technical teams and local planning authorities will become increasingly important.
For further details visit: https://lichfields.uk/blog/2026/july/01/decarbonising-the-nhs-estate-planning-funding-and-delivery-through-the-public-sector-decarbonisation-scheme
