Community Heating Feasibility Reports in London

We check whether connecting stacks up. We don't install it.

Community heating, also called district heating or a heat network, supplies heat and hot water to many buildings from one energy centre through underground pipes.

Planning often asks a new development to connect to one, or to show why it can't. That's where we come in. We write the heat network feasibility report: is there a network near you, can it serve your scheme, and is connecting the right answer for your heating and carbon targets?

• We do: the feasibility report, the heat demand figures, the comparison with other low-carbon options, and the text for your energy statement.
• We don't: design, install or connect the network, or the plant room. That's the network operator and your M&E contractor.

It is a desk-based study from your drawings and the published data.

When you need one

In London, the adopted London Plan (2021), Policy SI 3, says major developments inside a Heat Network Priority Area should have a communal low-temperature heating system. The heat source follows a heating hierarchy, and the first step is to connect to a local existing or planned heat network. Where a network is planned but not built yet, the development should be designed so it can connect at a later date at reasonable cost.

The GLA's energy assessment guidance asks you to show that connecting to an existing or planned network has been looked at first, with correspondence from the operator to back it up. Many London boroughs ask for the same in their local plan, often as a separate feasibility assessment.

You will usually need a feasibility report if:

• your site is a major development in a Heat Network Priority Area,
• a planning officer, pre-app or planning condition asks for a heat network connection assessment,
• your energy statement needs to explain why you are, or aren't, connecting.

How we use the London Heat Map

The London Heat Map is the GLA's online map of heat networks across London. It shows existing and proposed heat networks and energy centres, based on information from the network operators, plus the Heat Network Priority Areas and where heat demand is concentrated.

It is our first check on every job:

1. Is the site inside a Heat Network Priority Area?
2. How far is it from the nearest existing network, proposed network or energy centre?
3. Is there a borough heat network study or energy masterplan for the area?

That tells us how strong the case for connection is before we go any further. The map is a starting point, not the final word, so we then confirm what we can with the operator.

What's in the report

• Site check: London Heat Map results, the Heat Network Priority Area status, and the borough policy that applies.
• Heat demand: annual heating and hot water demand and peak load for the scheme, from our SAP or SBEM figures.
• The network: what the operator can tell us about capacity, route, timescale and carbon, with the correspondence attached.
• Options compared: connect now, a communal system built ready to connect later, or a stand-alone low-carbon system such as communal or individual heat pumps.
• Carbon: the carbon result for each option, on the same basis as your energy statement.
• A clear recommendation, with the reasons, written so the planning officer can follow it.

Where connecting doesn't work, we say why, and set out the best alternative under the heating hierarchy. We look for the affordable, feasible route, not the most expensive spec.

CHP (combined heat and power)

A CHP unit is an engine that generates electricity and captures the heat it gives off, so one fuel gives you both. Many of London's existing heat networks were built around gas-engine CHP.

Where CHP stands in London planning today:

• In the London Plan heating hierarchy, low-emission CHP comes third, and only where there is a case for CHP to deliver an area-wide heat network.
• The London Plan says the carbon savings from gas-engine CHP are falling as grid electricity decarbonises, and notes growing evidence of its impact on air quality. CHP and gas boiler systems have to be designed to meet the air quality policy, which is where an Air Quality Neutral assessment comes in.
• Gas-engine CHP isn't expected to count as "low-emission CHP" with the technology available now.
• Existing heat networks need decarbonisation plans that set out the low- and zero-carbon heat sources they will move to.

What that means for your feasibility report:

• The nearby network runs on gas CHP? We check its carbon figures and the operator's decarbonisation plan. That's what decides whether connecting helps your carbon target or works against it.
• CHP proposed on site? We model it in the SAP or SBEM and compare it with heat pump options on carbon, so planning sees a fair comparison.
• Existing building with ageing CHP plant? We compare the replacement options on carbon and EPC rating before you commit.

As with heat networks, we don't supply, install or maintain CHP. We do the assessment.

What's changing: the draft London Plan and heat network zoning

Checked 14 November 2026.

Draft London Plan. The Mayor published a draft new London Plan on 16 July 2026. Consultation closed on 15 October 2026, and examination follows before it is adopted. Under draft Policy GHR2, major developments would submit a Low Carbon Heat Appraisal that compares communal and individual systems and different heat sources on a level playing field, instead of treating heat network connection as the default. Until the new plan is adopted, the 2021 London Plan still applies.

Heat network zoning (England). Under the Energy Act 2023, the Government is bringing in heat network zones: areas where a heat network is the lowest-cost, low-carbon way to heat buildings. Inside a zone, certain new and existing buildings may be required to connect within a set time, with exemptions, for example where connecting wouldn't be cost-effective. The Government says zoning launches later this year.

Regulation. Ofgem became the regulator for heat networks in Great Britain on 27 January 2026, with new consumer protection rules for heat network customers.

We keep this section up to date as the rules change. See Industry Updates for the latest.

Existing buildings

If your building already has communal heating, or sits in an area likely to become a heat network zone, a feasibility report shows where you stand: what connecting would involve, what it would change in your EPC and carbon figures, and what the alternatives are. It is also useful when you are planning a plant replacement and want to know whether to wait for a network.

What we need from you

• The site address or postcode.
• Floor plans and the schedule of accommodation (number of units, or floor areas for commercial space).
• Your current heating strategy, if you have one.
• The pre-app comments or the planning condition wording, if planning has asked for it.
• Any contact you have already had with a heat network operator.

Price and turnaround

Priced by the size of the scheme. Send the details for a free quote. Turnaround: 5 working days once we have everything we need.

Need the energy statement or SAP calculations too? We price them together, and the figures carry straight across.

Our experience

More than 17 years in energy assessment, with a mechanical engineering background, and more than 50 energy statements for planning. Heat network feasibility sits inside the same work: the London Plan energy hierarchy, the heat demand from the SAP and SBEM, and the carbon figures planning officers check.

Questions we get asked

Do you install or connect to the heat network? No. We write the feasibility report that planning needs. The network operator and your M&E contractor design and carry out the connection.

My site is in a Heat Network Priority Area. Do I have to connect? Not always. The London Plan expects connection to an existing or planned network where it is feasible. If there is no network close enough, or it can't serve the scheme on time, the report shows that and sets out the next option in the heating hierarchy, usually a communal system built ready to connect later.

What is the London Heat Map? The GLA's online map of existing and proposed heat networks, energy centres and Heat Network Priority Areas in London. We use it as the first check on every feasibility report.

Can this go in my energy statement? Yes. We write the report so it sits inside the "be clean" section of your energy statement, or as a separate appendix if the borough asks for one.

Is CHP still accepted in London? Only in narrow cases. The London Plan puts low-emission CHP third in the heating hierarchy, and only where it is needed to deliver an area-wide heat network. Gas-engine CHP on its own site is now hard to justify on carbon and air quality. We show the comparison in the report.

Does heat network zoning affect my project? It might. Zoning is coming in for England, and buildings inside a zone may be required to connect, with exemptions. Send us the address and we'll tell you what we know for that area.

Related: Energy statements, Air Quality Neutral assessments, Urban Greening Factor calculations, SAP calculations and EPCs, SBEM and BRUKL, Retrofit energy assessments, Future Homes Standard and the Home Energy Model, Grants and funding, Carbon Reduction Plans (PPN 006). Guide: the London Plan energy hierarchy explained.

Email your drawings or WhatsApp us for a free quote.