Policy and prices drove the home-improvement news this month, with one announcement that directly cuts the cost of going low-carbon. Here is what late June meant for anyone planning work on a Kent home.
Heat pump grant rising to £9,000 for oil and LPG homes
The government announced on 26 June that the Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant will rise by 20%, from £7,500 to £9,000, from 21 July 2026, for households currently heated by oil or LPG in England and Wales. Leaflets are going out this week to 200,000 eligible off-gas-grid homes. Many rural and village properties across Kent sit off the gas grid, so for those owners the larger grant takes a real chunk off the upfront cost of an air-source or ground-source heat pump. Read the announcement on gov.uk.
Building material prices still drifting up
Official figures published on 3 June show building material prices rose 3.2% in the year to April 2026, with fabricated structural steel up 8.5% and sand, gravel and clay up 7.7%, though steel reinforcing bars fell 5.2%. Those costs feed straight into quotes for extensions, roofing and structural work. If you are pricing a project, budget a margin for steel and aggregate-heavy jobs rather than assuming flat costs. See the gov.uk commentary.
Construction activity hits a six-year low
The construction PMI fell to 38.2 in May, its weakest reading since May 2020 and a seventeenth straight month of contraction, with housebuilding the hardest hit, as reported by Construction Enquirer. A slower market with stretched supply chains can mean longer lead times on some materials, but it also gives homeowners more room to negotiate as builders compete for fewer jobs. Read the report.
Future Homes Standard confirmed for 2027
Government building circular 01/2026 has confirmed the Future Homes and Buildings Standards, tightening Part L and adding a requirement for on-site renewable electricity on new homes, in force from 24 March 2027. It targets new build rather than existing houses, but it sets the direction: low-carbon heating and on-site renewables are becoming the norm, which is worth bearing in mind when planning a major renovation. Read the circular.
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