Three boroughs side by side
| Measure | St Helens | Knowsley | Halton |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households (2021) | 81,011 | 66,073 | 55,951 |
| Mains gas only | 84.9% | 83.4% | 84.3% |
| No gas meter (2024) | 2.96% | 2.21% | 3.35% |
| Semi-detached | 47.0% | 43.1% | 34.5% |
| Terraced | 28.3% | 31.5% | 33.4% |
| Detached | 15.8% | 15.0% | 21.0% |
| Social rent | 19.7% | 25.3% | 24.3% |
| Heat pumps paid | 118 | 75 | 84 |
| Per 1,000 households | 1.5 | 1.1 | 1.5 |
| Listed-building records | 151 | 105 | 129 |
St Helens
St Helens is the most gas-dependent of the five boroughs (84.9% of households on mains gas alone) and has the largest share of semi-detached houses (47.0%). It also has the fewest homes heated by electricity alone (3.7%). That makes the typical St Helens case a gas-heated semi, where the unit goes at the side or rear and the standard £7,500 Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant applies. The combined authority secured the borough's Warm Homes: Local Grant funding and arranges the home surveys.
Knowsley
Knowsley has the lowest grant take-up of the five, about 1.1 heat pumps per 1,000 households, and the most social renting, with 25.3% of households renting from a council or housing association in 2021. Only 59.5% owned their home. Since social housing is outside the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, a large part of Knowsley's housing can only change through its landlords' own programmes. Knowsley Council's page says the Warm Homes: Local Grant is administered and managed by the combined authority.
Halton
Halton, made up of Runcorn and Widnes on either side of the Mersey, has the most varied housing of the five: the most detached houses (21.0%) and the most terraces (33.4%), with fewer semis than the others. Social renting is high too, at 24.3%. Halton's Warm Homes: Local Grant funding was secured by the combined authority and Halton Borough Council together, and residents register on the combined authority's page.
Why take-up is lower here
The statistics give no reasons, but three features of these boroughs point the same way. Almost every home is on mains gas, where the case for a heat pump rests on design and running costs rather than escaping an expensive fuel. A large share of homes are socially rented, and the Boiler Upgrade Scheme does not cover them. And owner-occupation is below the national 61.6% in Knowsley and Halton. For lower-income owners, the Warm Homes: Local Grant may be the more relevant route.
Semis and terraces
England's permitted development rules allow one air source unit on a semi-detached or terraced house without an application, as long as it passes the MCS 020 a) sound calculation to the nearest neighbouring window. On a terrace, the back garden or rear wall is usually the place; on a semi, the side passage can work if there is room for air to flow. The house types page has more.
Heating beyond gas
Gas is the rule in all three boroughs, and the alternatives are small. Electric heating alone ran from 3.7% of households in St Helens to 4.5% in Halton in 2021. Knowsley had the highest share of tank or bottled gas of the five boroughs, 0.86%, against 0.38% in St Helens and 0.41% in Halton. Between 1.2% and 1.5% of households had no central heating. A home heated by oil or bottled gas with no mains connection is where the higher Boiler Upgrade Scheme band, which runs until 31 March 2027, may apply.
Private renting
Private renting is lower here than on the coast: 15.1% of households in St Helens, 14.3% in Knowsley and 14.3% in Halton, against 18.9% in Wirral. With social renting high in Knowsley and Halton, that leaves fewer households who can decide on a heat pump themselves. Private landlords can use the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, and the Warm Homes: Local Grant covers privately rented homes with the landlord's agreement.
Listed buildings
The three boroughs hold fewer listed-building records than the coast: 151 in St Helens, 105 in Knowsley and 129 in Halton, between 1.6 and 2.3 per 1,000 households. An older house can still be listed, so check before planning the position of a unit.
Beside the other boroughs
All three share the combined authority route with Wirral, while Sefton runs its own; Warm Homes routes sets the routes out in full, and the borough selector shows each borough's figures beside its route.
Semis, terraces and gardens
Semi-detached houses are the largest group in St Helens (47.0%) and Knowsley (43.1%), while in Halton they share the stock almost evenly with terraces (34.5% and 33.4%). A semi's side passage or rear wall is the usual place for an outdoor unit; a terrace leaves the back garden or yard. Halton's detached houses, 21.0% of households and the highest share of the five, can take up to two units under Class G and sometimes a ground loop under Class C. Purpose-built flats are fewer here than on the coast, from 7.2% of households in St Helens to 9.5% in Halton, so most jobs in these boroughs are houses rather than blocks. The house types page compares the five boroughs side by side.
Runcorn and Widnes face each other across the Mersey, and Halton's figures cover both towns together.