Air conditioning in Bromley: what you can install and what the grant covers
Many homes in Bromley may not need a planning application for an air-to-air heat pump, if every Class G condition is met. Bromley is mainly houses: around seven in ten (68.6%) of households live in a detached, semi-detached or terraced house, so rear walls, side returns and gardens are usually available. The main exception is the borough's 47 conservation areas, where the unit has to stay off walls and roofs that front the street. A wall-mounted air-to-air heat pump, the unit most people call air conditioning, heats as well as cools, which is what lets it use the permitted-development route and what may make it eligible for the £2,500 government grant.
See if the £2,500 grant applies to your home — five questions.
Check my eligibilityDo you need planning permission in Bromley?
For many houses, possibly not. In England, one air-to-air heat pump (two on a detached house) can be permitted development under Class G if every limit and condition is met: the outdoor unit is no more than 1.5 m³, the installation complies with MCS 020a on noise, and the unit is not above ground-floor level on a wall facing a highway.
Cooling-only air conditioning does not qualify for this heat-pump route. Check with Bromley council whether planning permission is needed for a cooling-only proposal. If you want certainty for a house, you can ask the council for a lawful development certificate.
Conservation areas in Bromley
Bromley has 47 conservation areas. Inside one, the permitted-development route does not cover a unit on a wall or roof that fronts a highway, so the usual answer is a rear or concealed position, or a planning application.
A listed building always needs listed building consent, whichever wall the unit is on. Some homes may also be covered by an Article 4 direction that removes permitted-development rights, so check with the council before you commit.
Flats and leaseholds
Around three in ten (31.3%) of Bromley households live in flats: purpose-built blocks, converted houses and flats in other buildings. A block of flats can use Class G if every condition is met, including the 0.6 m³ limit on the outdoor unit and only the first unit on the block.
Leaseholders should check their lease and obtain any required freeholder or managing-agent consent before anything is fixed to the outside of the building. If you rent, the grant follows the property, so you can share your checker result with your landlord.
The £2,500 grant in Bromley
About eight in ten (82.2%) of Bromley households heat with mains gas only, and around one in fifteen (6.8%) with electricity only.
The £2,500 air-to-air grant can apply to an eligible residential installation replacing either fossil-fuel or non-heat-pump electric heating. Homes with direct electric heating are the easiest fit because nothing else has to change. Gas-boiler homes can also qualify, but only if the boiler is fully removed and the new system covers all heating and hot water; for many boiler homes the £7,500 air-to-water grant is the better route, and a property can only use one grant. Your MCS-certified installer applies for the voucher through Ofgem. Nothing is guaranteed until they confirm your home and a certified product.
See if the £2,500 grant applies to your home — five questions.
Check my eligibilityFrequently asked questions
Do I need planning permission for air conditioning in Bromley?
An air-to-air heat pump that heats as well as cools may be permitted development for a house if every Class G limit and condition is met. A cooling-only unit does not qualify for this route. Conservation areas, Article 4 directions and listed buildings can mean you need an application, so check with Bromley council.
Can I install air con in a Bromley conservation area?
Often, yes, but not on a wall or roof fronting a highway without planning permission. With 47 conservation areas in Bromley, rear or concealed placements are the usual route.
Can flats in Bromley get the £2,500 grant?
Possibly. The £2,500 air-to-air grant can apply to an eligible residential installation replacing fossil-fuel or non-heat-pump electric heating. The property owner and installer must confirm the other scheme conditions, and the external unit may need freeholder consent.
Who applies for the grant?
Your MCS-certified installer applies to Ofgem on your behalf and deducts £2,500 from your quote. You never fill in a government form.
Nearby
Useful links
SOURCES
Bromley council: Conservation areas (47 conservation areas), bromley.gov.uk
ONS Census 2021, TS044 Accommodation type and TS046 Central heating (E09000006)
legislation.gov.uk GPDO Part 14 Class G
Local information is indicative. Confirm planning and costs with an MCS-certified installer for your address, and check the current Ofgem guidance for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme.