Codrina Cretu
Nesta’s Codrina Cretu explains the charity’s goals for its new heat pump website.
Whilst heat pumps are a proven and established technology across many parts of Europe, in the UK they are less common. For this reason many people would not have knowingly seen a heat pump, or know how to go about finding out if a heat pump could work for their home.
At Nesta, the UK’s innovation charity, we want to support households in finding specific, relevant information that supports their decision to make the switch to low-carbon heating.
What’s out there?
Foundational work from Nesta alongside the Energy Saving Trust in 2021 demonstrated there is a demand for better information on heat pumps, particularly online. Researching how to get a heat pump can be overwhelming, requiring in-depth research into the process and finding trustworthy, reliable installers. Our findings revealed that a great deal of research is done online and that while information is available, it is often confusing, spread across multiple sources and overly generic. As a result, many potential adopters abort their heat pump journey at an early stage.
Over the past few years our research has consistently confirmed that users need real examples of installations, transparency around the cost, certainty about the installation process and information that enables users to take concrete steps towards getting a heat pump.
A new online tool
To help fill this gap Nesta has developed a consumer-facing web service that helps potential heat pump adopters access the information they need to move forward with their installation. We’ve built this site based on insights from those who are looking to start their journey towards low-carbon heating – including on what their pain points are, what information is missing or hard to find online and the questions they want answered. We’ve worked with organisations across the advice and heating sector to gather insight on what gap this service is filling, to make sure we can offer something truly useful.
At www.getaheatpump.org.uk homeowners can access free and independent advice and information to help them make a decision about the future of their home heating.
Through the website, users can learn more about the benefits of heat pumps, what type of heat pump could work in their home, estimated costs and practical information on installation.
Common questions about heat pumps are answered on the site and users can also read case studies of heat pump owners who have shared their experiences of installing and living with a heat pump.
What happens next?
We want this website to be useful for homeowners needing more information to take the next step, landlords looking to decarbonise their homes, and to anyone looking to support those households transitioning to low-carbon heating. The site is laid out in a way that users can start with no knowledge at all, or dive into specific aspects they are interested in.
The website is a beta service, meaning we are in the process of testing and improving it. Over the next few months we’ll be driving traffic to the website to understand how people use the site and gather insight and feedback on potential developments.
If you think this information could be useful for your customers please add the link to your website and use assets from this media pack to share on your channels.
We’re looking for people who are interested in green home heating to test this service and let us know how it could be improved, so please take a look and share your thoughts.
