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Ofgem registration · England, Scotland and Wales
Heat Network Registration Support Survey
Heat networks are now regulated by Ofgem, and the operator of each relevant network must register it by 26 January 2027. Vital's registration support survey verifies the technical information Ofgem asks for, so you know what you have and what is still missing.
Status
Law
Heat Networks (Market Framework) (Great Britain) Regulations 2025
Register by
26 Jan 2027
Registration is open now through Ofgem's digital service
Applies to
Each network
District, communal, self-supply, industrial and shared ground loop
Who
The operator
Often the landlord, freeholder, management company or managing agent
The Law
The framework covers England, Scotland and Wales. Northern Ireland is outside it. Further requirements on pricing, service standards and consumer protection are expected to follow as the framework develops.
Since January 2026, heat networks have been regulated by Ofgem under a new framework that is being introduced in stages. The first stage requires operators of relevant heat networks to identify their networks and register them with Ofgem by 26 January 2027.
A relevant heat network is typically a communal network serving multiple premises within one building, or a district network supplying several buildings from a central energy source. Self-supply, industrial and shared ground loop networks are also in scope, with lighter obligations.
If you operate or supply one of these networks, for example as a landlord, building owner, freeholder or management company, you have legal duties under the regulations, starting with registration.
What is the Registration Support Survey?
To complete the Ofgem registration process, heat suppliers and operators need to provide accurate information about their heat network. Some of it may already be in building records. Other details need physical verification on site.
Vital provides a verification site visit to help you check and complete the information required for registration. Before attending, we review the information you already hold and use it as the basis for the visit. On site, our assessors verify the available details, including:
- Plant and equipment information
- Heat sources and how the network is fed
- System components and distribution
- Buildings and premises served
- Other technical information Ofgem asks for
Where reasonably accessible, we also collect photographic evidence to support the information provided.
The survey provides technical verification and information gathering. Responsibility for registering the heat network with Ofgem remains with the heat supplier, network operator or an authorised representative acting on their behalf.
Which networks need to register?
Ofgem’s framework covers five types of relevant heat network:
- District. Supplies heating, cooling or hot water to two or more buildings.
- Communal. Supplies a single building divided into separate premises, such as a block of flats or a multi-let office.
- Self-supply. Supplies only the organisation that owns it, such as a hospital, campus or prison.
- Industrial. Supplies at least one industrial site, mainly for an industrial process.
- Shared ground loop. A shared ground or water loop feeding individual heat pumps.
Some arrangements are exempt, including a single house in multiple occupation with shared heating, conversions with a single heat source of 45kW or less, and buildings with shared facilities that are not divided into separate premises, such as care homes. If you are unsure, ask us.
Who is responsible?
The legal responsibility for registering a heat network sits with the heat supplier or network operator, or an authorised body acting on their behalf, such as a managing agent.
Registration is per heat network, not per building. A district network serving several buildings is one registration; the buildings it serves are recorded within it.
Each organisation nominates a regulatory contact, usually the most senior person responsible for heat networks, who sets up the account on Ofgem’s digital service. Where a network has more than one operator, they must agree a single nominated operator and tell Ofgem.
What you get at the end
Following the visit, we provide a clear summary of our findings, confirming the information verified during the survey and identifying anything still outstanding before registration can be completed.
Some registration information may need to be sourced from other parties, such as historic records, building documentation, maintenance providers or design consultants. Ofgem also asks for organisation-level information that a site survey cannot provide, including company structure and ownership. Our summary tells you what you have, what has been verified and what remains to be gathered.
Nationwide heat network surveys
Vital provides heat network registration support surveys across England, Scotland and Wales. Whether you are responsible for a single communal system or a portfolio of buildings with several networks, we can establish which of them are in scope, verify the technical detail on site and leave you with a clear picture of what is needed to register.
Registration is open now. The earlier the technical information is verified, the more time there is to chase anything missing before 26 January 2027.
Talk to the Vital team
0345 111 7700
info@vitaldirect.co.uk
Tell us the building, how the heat is supplied and what records you already hold, and we will confirm whether the network needs registering and what a survey would cover.
Request a quote
Official sources
Same building, other duties
Energy Performance Certificates
The buildings served by a heat network are usually the same multi-let blocks and offices that need a valid EPC when they are sold or let. The heating system is one of the services that drives the rating.
Vital provides commercial EPCs nationwide, and a heat network survey and an EPC can often be arranged together.
Register the network. Rate the building.
About commercial EPCs
- EPC required on construction, sale or letting
- Valid for 10 years
- Heating, cooling, lighting and fabric all feed the rating
- One point of contact for both
Common questions
What landlords, freeholders and managing agents ask about Ofgem registration.
Do we register each building or each network?
Each network. A district system serving several buildings is one registration, and the buildings it serves are recorded within it. A block with its own communal system is a separate network.
Does the survey register the network for us?
No. The survey verifies the technical information Ofgem asks for and tells you what is still missing. Submitting the registration remains with the operator or their authorised representative.
Is heat network registration open now, or is it a future requirement?
It is open now. Ofgem's digital registration service went live in 2026 and operators must have registered each relevant network by 26 January 2027. Treat the date as the deadline, not the start.
Our building is a care home with one boiler. Is that a heat network?
Usually not. A single building with shared facilities that is not divided into separate premises is exempt, as is a single house in multiple occupation with shared heating. Blocks of flats and multi-let buildings with a shared system are in scope. We can confirm for your building.
We have buildings in Northern Ireland. Do they need registering?
No. The Heat Networks (Market Framework) Regulations cover England, Scotland and Wales only. Northern Ireland has no equivalent registration requirement at present.
Who registers the network, us or our managing agent?
The legal duty sits with the heat supplier or network operator. A managing agent can do the registration as an authorised representative, but the responsibility stays with the operator. Agree who is doing it early, and make sure Ofgem has the right regulatory contact.
Measure. Model. Improve. Comply.
Not sure whether your heat network needs registering?
Vital provides heat network registration support surveys across England, Scotland and Wales.