The MCS Foundation and partners campaigned to ensure all new homes have renewables energy systems under the Future Homes Standard.  

The Future Homes Standard was published in March 2026 and will require all new homes to have solar panels, and a heat pump or connection to a low-carbon heat network. 

 What this means for households, the renewables industry, and environment 

The Future Homes will have real impact, ensuring many more homes can benefit from being carbon free:  

• Our research found that a household living in a new-build home with solar panels and a heat pump could save over £1,000 a year.  

• Heat pump installations could increase by as much as 500%, driving more industry growth and supporting the UK to meet its climate targets. 

• If solar panels are installed on all new homes, an additional 6GW of subsidy-free generating capacity could be generated – equivalent to the capacity of two Sizewell C nuclear power stations. 

What happens next 

It will now be critical to ensure households have confidence in the technologies their new home will come with. That means housebuilders should ensure every installation is delivered by an MCS certified installer, to MCS standards.