Heat pumps and solar panels in Yorkshire

Where we work today

We start in South Yorkshire: Sheffield, Rotherham, Barnsley and Doncaster, and the towns and villages around them. Our South Yorkshire page goes through each area in more detail. Starting in one area and growing carefully means every home gets proper attention. West Yorkshire comes next, then the rest of the county. If you’re just outside the area, start your home assessment anyway and we’ll tell you honestly whether we can help yet.

What Yorkshire homes tell us

The right technology depends on the house, and South Yorkshire’s housing stock is varied:

• Victorian and Edwardian stone and brick terraces in inner Sheffield and the older town centres: solid walls lose heat faster, so a heat-loss calculation matters before any heat pump decision. Loft bedrooms in these houses are classic summer hot spots, where air-to-air often helps.
• Inter-war and post-war semis across the suburbs and former colliery towns: often good all-round candidates, with roof space for solar and room for a cylinder.
• Larger detached homes to the south-west of Sheffield, such as Dore and Totley: bigger roofs and heating demand, where both solar and air-to-water are worth modelling.
• Rural and Peak-fringe villages, for example around Loxley and Bradfield: more homes off the gas grid on oil or LPG, which is where the running-cost case for an air-to-water heat pump tends to be clearest.

Planning: the local rules to know

Most houses can add solar panels or a heat pump under permitted development, without a planning application. Three local exceptions are worth knowing:

• The Peak District National Park covers part of Sheffield’s western edge. Different rules apply inside the park; the National Park Authority’s guidance explains them.
• Conservation areas, such as Nether Edge in Sheffield, can restrict panels or outdoor units on elevations that face the street.
• Listed buildings need listed building consent for most external changes.

Where any of these apply, it’s checked before a recommendation is made, not after.

Solar output here

A well-sited, unshaded south-facing roof in South Yorkshire typically generates around 850–950 kWh a year for every kilowatt of panels. Roof direction, pitch and shade matter more than the latitude. Our guide Do solar panels work in Yorkshire? explains what that means for a typical home.

The local grid

Northern Powergrid runs the electricity network across most of Yorkshire. A new solar or battery system has to be notified to them, or for larger systems approved, and that is done by the installer as part of the job.

Areas we cover

Areas we cover now: Sheffield (including Hillsborough, Crookes, Walkley, Ecclesall, Dore and Totley, Fulwood, Nether Edge, Woodseats, Beighton, Mosborough, Handsworth, Stannington, High Green and Chapeltown, Stocksbridge, Loxley and Bradfield), Rotherham and nearby (Wickersley, Maltby, Rawmarsh, Wath-upon-Dearne, Swinton, Dinnington), Barnsley and nearby (Penistone, Hoyland, Wombwell, Royston, Cudworth, Darton) and Doncaster and nearby (Bessacarr, Bawtry, Tickhill, Conisbrough, Mexborough, Armthorpe, Thorne).