It has been announced that the Future Homes Standard (FHS) will mandate that most new homes built from 2028 must include on-site renewable energy generation as standard.
While it has been on the cards for some time, the government has now published details of its FHS, moving new regulatory requirements from policy into implementation.
Under the FHS, all new homes – with some exceptions such as high-rise buildings – must include on-site renewables, mainly rooftop solar, along with low-carbon heating such as heat pumps and heat networks.
This higher standard for new homes will come into force from 2028, a year later than anticipated.
As outlined in the updated planning requirements, developers will need to install solar panels equivalent in size to at least 40% of the building’s floor area. Where this is not possible, a “reasonable” amount of solar must be installed. There is some flexibility with this, however, such as homes with excessive overhead tree cover.
According to the government...