The good news

THE GOOD NEWS

On the plus side, domestic energy consumption has been falling steadily this century

Domestic energy consumption in the UK, 2002-2024

Source: Gov.uk, Energy Consumption in the UK (ECUK) 2025

There is cause for optimism, however.

For instance, domestic energy consumption has been falling steadily over the last two decades: the 2024 figure was 20% below the 2002 figure.

Improvements in energy efficiency have been a key driver of this. More recently, warmer weather and higher energy costs have also helped to reduce usage (the Government provides a temperature-corrected figure to account for annual temperature fluctuations).

THE GOOD NEWS

Grid decarbonisation has been a big success (though challenges remain)

Volume (GWh) and percentage of electricity generated from renewable sources, 2000-2024

Source: GOV.UK, Digest of UK Energy Statistics (DUKES)

In 2024, the proportion of UK electricity generated from renewable sources hit a record high of 50.4% – the first time renewables have provided the majority of the UK’s electricity. (Grid decarbonisation via renewables has helped reduce UK per capita CO₂ emissions by >50% since 2000, making the UK one of the best-performing countries in the world on this metric.)

By 2030, the current Government has committed to producing at least as much energy as the UK consumes in a year from clean sources. But high prices and insufficient infrastructure remain major barriers to further electrification in the UK.

THE GOOD NEWS

Low-carbon technologies like heat pumps can help – though we need to increase uptake

Heat pump sales over time, 2019-2024

Source: Heat Pump Association, 2024

Technology is also providing us with new solutions to bring down emissions in the home.

Take heat pumps, which are both a lower-carbon and more efficient way of powering our homes (they're ~3-4x more efficient than a traditional gas boiler). Uptake has been increasing steadily – though not fast enough, if we are to reach the Government's ambitious target of 600k installations per year by 2028.

Rooftop solar can also help: over the past decade, the cost of solar panels globally has fallen by 90%.

THE GOOD NEWS

Most old homes can be retrofitted (to improve energy-efficiency) for less than £15,000

Cost to retrofit average UK mortgaged home to an EPC C standard

Source: Kamma Climate, 2014

Some 19m homes in the UK – about two-thirds of our stock – are rated EPC D or below. Upgrading these homes to EPC C would reduce CO₂e by millions of tonnes (and potentially create thousands of jobs in the process).

Previous estimates have put the cost of a meaningful retrofit at ~£20-40k, which wouldn't make sense financially for most people. However, Kamma's data paints a more positive picture, suggesting that 90% of mortgaged homes could be upgraded to EPC C for less than £15,000.

THE GOOD NEWS

Co-living (and other new typologies) can also play a role in bringing down housing emissions

Energy usage (kWh per year per resident) in co-living communities vs average UK flat/ 1-bedroom household

Source: Conscious Co-living/ WhyCo?, 2025

Different living models can also be part of the solution.

For instance, Conscious Co-living’s analysis of three early co-living schemes found that resident energy use ranged from 2,448 kWh to 3,456 kWh per capita. That’s about 2.5-4 times less than the average energy use of a 1-bedroom UK flat (and 3-5 times more efficient than the UK national household average).

These carbon savings come from the higher density (i.e. smaller rooms) and communal resources, plus smart design and energy management.

THE GOOD NEWS

Decarbonising our key building materials should help to reduce embodied carbon

Carbon intensity reduction (2050) breakdown per material category

Source: Source: UK Green Building Council, Whole Life Carbon Roadmap

Reducing the embodied carbon of housebuilding will require us to decarbonise construction materials. Cement and steel, two of the most important, currently account for ~15% of global CO₂ emissions all by themselves.

However, the UK GBC argues that process improvements, grid decarbonisation and (more debatably) carbon capture should reduce the carbon intensity of building materials substantially over time. We are already some promising signs in net zero cement and green steel.