The Future Homes Standard

Getting ready for the Future Homes Standard

The Future Homes Standard is set to be the most dramatic change to the Building Regulations for energy use in a generation. It could be with us as soon as this year, impacting construction in 2026. If you are involved in a domestic planning application, or the first stages of designing a new home, your build may be impacted. It won’t be long until you find yourself looking at a very different set of rules for your building design.

This makes it more important than ever for design teams to stay ahead of the changes. They’ll need to know in advance what they might have to do to comply and thrive under the new rules. Specifying the wrong type of heating system now, or leaving no room for renewables, may prove more costly later on.

To help, Build Energy is offering a free plan checking service to help you understand if your design is going in the right direction. We’ll look at your plans for heating, ventilation, solar panels and building fabric.

We’ll let you know if these are in line with what we know about the Future Homes Standard so far. We’ll also email you from time to time if the requirements change before the official launch.

We’re motivated by helping people design and build greener homes. If you chose to stick with Build Energy for your energy assessments and testing throughout the rest of the process, we’ll of course be delighted. However, there is no obligation.

To start the conversation, simply show us any drawings and specifications you have so far. You can email these to be@buildenergy.co.uk with subject line “Future Homes Standard”, or use the form to the right.

The government has published a consultation document which gives some details about what we can expect. There have also been several key announcements this year. We think the changes most likely to impact you are:

• Solar PV is going to be mandatory for new homes. The amount will depends on the size and type of property.
• Electric heat pumps are the new normal. There will be either a ban on fossil fuel heating, or targets so stringent that only modern electric systems are able to pass.
• Building fabric will be very similar to the 2022 Part L interim uplift.

Keep an eye on our tips and insights articles, our newsletter and our CPD for updates ahead of the official launch.

Future Homes Standard compliance builds on current SAP calculations under Part L. For planning-stage energy assessments, see Energy Statements. For fabric performance testing, see Air Tightness Testing and Thermal Bridge Calculations.

What is the Future Homes Standard?

The Future Homes Standard is a planned update to Part L of the Building Regulations for new dwellings in England, requiring homes to be built to a significantly higher fabric and energy efficiency standard than the 2021 regulations. When introduced, it will require new homes to produce approximately 75–80% fewer carbon emissions than homes built to pre-2021 Part L standards, typically through heat pumps, triple glazing and high levels of insulation.

When will the Future Homes Standard come into force?

The Future Homes Standard is expected to come into force in 2025 or 2026 following final consultation and legislation. The government consulted on the technical specification in 2024 and is expected to publish the final standard shortly. Build Energy monitors developments and advises clients on readiness planning.

What fabric and services performance does the Future Homes Standard require?

The Future Homes Standard is expected to require significantly improved fabric performance (better insulation, higher airtightness targets) and the elimination of fossil fuel heating systems from new homes. The most common compliant specification is expected to be air source heat pump heating, triple-glazed windows, and airtightness of around 3 m³/h.m² at 50 Pa.

How will the Future Homes Standard affect SAP calculations?

The Future Homes Standard will use an updated version of SAP (likely SAP 11 or a successor) to calculate compliance. The new SAP methodology will place greater emphasis on carbon factors, primary energy and fabric performance, and will change how the compliance target (the Fabric Energy Efficiency Standard, or FEES equivalent) is calculated.

What should developers be doing now to prepare for the Future Homes Standard?

Developers with longer land pipelines should be reviewing their standard house type specifications and supply chains for heat pumps, high-performance windows and insulation systems. Build Energy can provide SAP modelling for proposed Future Homes Standard specifications to help developers understand the implications for their standard product range.