05/08/2026
Written by Lucy Thomas, Louise Mansfield, Carrie Davies, and Joseph Halawin.
The regulatory landscape for heat networks is evolving. In a previous article we considered aspects of the planning regime that will apply to heat networks being delivered in zones.
In this, the second of three articles in the series we consider the role of the local planning authority in heat network zoning and ways in which Zone Coordination Bodies and local planning authorities might work together.
In the third article we will consider other tools at the disposal of Local Authorities to support delivery of heat networks.
Will the local planning authority be the Heat Network Zone Coordinator for their local area?
The proposed zoning regime as set out in the draft Heat Network Zoning Regulations envisages three entities:
- the Zoning Authority;
- the Zone Coordination Body (“ZCB”); and
- the Zone Developer.
The Zoning Authority is a function that will initially sit within the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) though the expectation is this will transfer in due course to the Warm Homes Agency. The Zoning Authority will be responsible for overseeing the zoning framework nationally including developing a standard methodology to identify, refine, designate and review Heat Network Zones across England, ensuring that there is a consistent national approach rather than every area adopting its own methodology.
The Zoning Authority will oversee implementation of the zoning regime, coordinate the appointment of ZCBs, provide support and guidance to those bodies as the system develops, and manage the significant amount of data that underpins the zoning process.
ZCBs will be responsible for managing the development of heat networks within designated Heat Network Zones. ZCBs will collect and analyse local data to refine the boundaries of proposed zones and conduct public consultations about proposed zone boundaries before formally designating zones and registering them with the Zoning Authority.
ZCBs will also be responsible for appointing Zone Developers. Zone Developers will receive exclusive rights to develop district heat networks within that particular. Zone Developers will be accountable to the ZCB and will need to comply with a standard set of conditions covering matters such as the speed of design and construction, delivery milestones, ongoing performance and, importantly, the delivery of wider benefits to local communities.
Local Authorities (which comprise multiple departments including the local planning authority) may be ZCBs. However, ZCBs may also be created by more than one Local Authority and / or a combination of Local Authorities and Strategic Authorities (for further consideration of the potential impact of Local Government Reorganisation on heat networks see this article).
Where a ZCB is a Local Authority, which also houses a local planning authority there must be a clear separation of functions so that the zoning function remains operationally separate from the Local Authority's planning decision-making role to protect the integrity of both systems.
Therefore, while some Local Authorities may ultimately become ZCBs, the local planning authority itself will not absorb that function.
Must local planning authorities plan for Heat Network Zones in their area?
The current National Planning Policy Framework (“NPPF”) sets out the Government's national planning policies for England and provides the framework that local planning authorities apply when preparing and reviewing their Local Plans. The current NPPF is clear that the planning system should support the transition to a low-carbon future, and it expects planning authorities to shape places in ways that contribute to radical reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and the NPPF supports renewable and low-carbon energy infrastructure including specifically recognising heat networks as one of the technologies capable of helping to achieve those objectives.
National planning policy is an area where policy is evolving. Proposed revisions to the NPPF, which have been consulted on recently, and which are expected to be adopted later this year, provide much more explicit support for heat networks. The proposed revisions expect that Local Plans should identify "opportunities for developments to draw their heat or energy supply from decentralised networks (such as district heat networks), renewable or low carbon energy supply systems, and for co-locating potential customers and suppliers of surplus heat or energy."
This represents a potentially significant shift, encouraging local planning authorities to think spatially including about who potential heat network customers might be, what might constitute sources of heat and how future development patterns can make connection to heat networks easier. Indeed, the consultation draft NPPF goes further, stating that there "should be consideration of Heat Network Zones" within Local Plans once a zone has been designated.
However, the draft NPPF does not say that a designated Heat Network Zone automatically overrides the Local Plan and does not give zoning primacy over the statutory plan-making process or remove the authority's planning judgement. The obligation is one of consideration, not automatic adoption. Therefore, we expect that if when the draft NPPF is enacted local planning authorities will be expected to genuinely consider designated zones as part of the process of making a Local Plan, but they will retain responsibility for preparing a sound Local Plan based on the wider planning evidence, which may, or may not, include heat network zones.
What influence will the local planning authority have over where a heat network zone is located within their area?
The Energy Act itself says little about the relationship. It establishes a high-level framework with detail to be left to secondary legislation. The draft heat network zoning regulations indicate that the local planning authority is intended to be consulted before a zone is formally designated, not least because they are expected to have detailed knowledge about where growth is planned, regeneration is taking place, major employment sites are coming forward and significant infrastructure investment is already planned, all of which is highly relevant when deciding where a heat network is most likely to succeed.
However, the local planning authority is only one among various consultees and there is nothing to suggest that their views are expected to carry any greater legal weight than that of other statutory consultees. The ZCB is expected to be required to consult and to consider responses but is not required to reach an agreement with every consultee. It is therefore possible that a local planning authority may consider that a proposed zone boundary should follow one route while the ZCB reaches a different conclusion, something that may be more likely where a ZCB is not the Local Authority where the planning authority is housed.
Similarly, there is no corresponding statutory requirement for the planning authority to consult ZCBs when preparing or reviewing a Local Plan, which seems a surprising omission.
What role does the local planning authority have in requiring new buildings to connect to a heat network in a zone?
As we have noted previously, demand assurance (in the form of committed connections) is fundamental to the commercial feasibility of heat networks. However, neither the current NPPF nor the Planning Practice Guidance expressly addresses whether a local planning authority can, or should, require new developments to connect to an existing or proposed heat network through planning conditions or section 106 obligations.
The draft heat network zoning regulations introduce the concept of a Connection Notice through which a Zone Developer may request a ZCB to require a building owner to enable and permit a connection to the Heat Network and there are exemptions and appeals processes. However, the local planning authority is not the decision maker within that process.
As we have mentioned, there is also no statutory requirement for a local planning authority to consult a ZCB when determining planning applications, despite the statutory list of planning consultees having been updated recently. This appears to be a missed opportunity. The planning stage is when buildings are being designed, plant rooms are being planned, energy strategies are being prepared, and underground services are being coordinated. Retrofitting to connect to a heat network is more complicated, more disruptive and more expensive than designing that capability into the development from the outset. The Connection Notice regime deals with the legal requirement to facilitate a connection, but the planning process has the opportunity to make that connection practical.
However, despite there being no mandate to connect in either heat network or planning regulation, the emerging NPPF arguably provides a much stronger policy basis for developing Local Plans that encourage developers to think about heat networks much earlier in the design process.
However, planners would still have to operate within the legal framework governing planning conditions and planning obligations (meaning obligations must be necessary, relevant to planning, relevant to the development, enforceable, precise, and reasonable in all other aspects). Similarly, section 106 obligations are subject to their own statutory limitations and must also satisfy the relevant legal tests.
A planning condition requiring connection to a heat network could potentially satisfy the required tests. Factors that would assist in such a condition succeeding would likely be:
- the Local Plan contains policy supporting heat network connections;
- the site falls within a designated heat network zone;
- the heat network is already in place or will be developed within an identifiable timescale;
- technical evidence demonstrates feasibility;
- there is a positive economic assessment; and
- an planning condition requiring connection is a proportionate requirement to ensure a sustainable development.
Overall, the planning authority would have to ask itself whether imposing a planning condition that requires connection to a heat network is reasonable and necessary.
Conclusion
The conjunction of heat network zoning, Local Government Reorganisation and planning law and policy make effective planning even more important. Successful delivery of heat networks in zones is likely to depend on planning policy, zoning, licensing and local collaboration all working together to create a clear and deliverable framework for heat network investment.
If you would like to discuss any of the issues raised in this article please contact Lucy Thomas, Louise Mansfield, or Carrie Davies, who would be happy to discuss.
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