Public buildings across UK to receive energy efficiency upgrades

15 May 2025

More than £630 million in government funding has been awarded to public buildings across England to support energy efficiency improvements, with the aim of reducing long-term energy bills and cutting carbon emissions.

Announced by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, the funding will go towards upgrades in schools, care homes, hospitals, and community centres. These upgrades include the installation of heat pumps, solar panels, insulation and double glazing. The improvements are expected to deliver an estimated £650 million in savings for taxpayers annually through to 2037.

Projects receiving funding include the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, which will use more than £30 million to upgrade facilities such as Queens Park Leisure Centre and Birkenhead Central Library. The Northumbria NHS Foundation Trust will receive over £14 million to replace fossil fuel heating systems at two sites. The Royal Air Force Museum Midlands has been awarded £1 million to improve a historic aircraft hangar, while Worcester City Council will use £90,000 to retrofit a local youth centre.

Higher education and cultural institutions are also among the beneficiaries. The University of York will receive £35 million for a geothermal energy project designed to supply low-carbon heat to campus buildings. The National Portrait Gallery will switch its main gallery and archive building to heat pumps using over £5 million in funding.

An additional £102 million from the Green Heat Network Fund will support new and existing heat networks in England, including a project in Westminster that aims to use waste heat from the River Thames to reduce emissions from nearby landmarks such as the Houses of Parliament.

The investment is part of the government’s wider Plan for Change, aimed at improving the energy performance of public buildings while supporting the UK’s clean energy goals. According to officials, the upgrades will not only improve environmental performance but also allow more public funds to be directed towards essential services.

This announcement follows a separate initiative by Great British Energy to install solar panels on around 200 schools and 200 NHS sites, enabling institutions to reinvest energy savings into education and healthcare.