Oldham in short
- Oldham town is built on high ground on the edge of the Pennines, and Saddleworth climbs higher still.
- Areas around the town centre such as Werneth and Glodwick have large numbers of brick terraces from the cotton-mill era.
- Saddleworth's villages — Uppermill, Delph, Dobcross, Diggle, Denshaw — are largely stone-built, with conservation-area constraints in places.
- Exposed, higher homes are designed against colder winter conditions, which affects sizing.
Oldham grew as a cotton-spinning town on the Pennine slopes, and its housing reflects that: street after street of brick terraces built for mill workers, with the stone villages of Saddleworth spread across the hills to the east. Both can take a heat pump. They just raise different questions.
Mill-town terraces
A solid-walled terrace loses more heat through its walls than a modern house, but it also shares walls with its neighbours, so the total heat loss of a mid-terrace is often lower than people assume. The practical challenge is usually where the outdoor unit goes: a small rear yard needs enough clear airflow around the unit, a drain for condensate, and a noise check against the neighbours' windows. That has to be surveyed, not guessed.
Saddleworth and high ground
Heat loss calculations are made against a design outside temperature for your location, and that figure is colder on high, exposed ground. A house on the hills above Delph or Diggle is therefore sized against a harsher winter than a house in central Manchester, which usually means a slightly larger heat pump and more radiator capacity for the same floor area. It does not mean a heat pump stops working in the cold: a correctly sized system is specified to meet the house's needs on the coldest design day.
Stone cottages need the same care with insulation as elsewhere in the Pennines — old stone walls need to stay breathable — and the village centres are where conservation-area rules on external work are most likely to apply. Rural properties that are off the mains gas grid often have the strongest running-cost case for a heat pump.
Off-gas homes in Saddleworth
Not every house in Saddleworth is connected to mains gas. Outlying farmhouses, barns and hamlets often heat with oil or LPG from a tank, or with electric storage heaters. Replacing those systems is where a heat pump tends to make the clearest running-cost case, because oil, LPG and direct electric heating are expensive per unit of heat. These homes are often larger and detached, with more outdoor space, which gives more freedom over where the outdoor unit goes and can make a ground source system with horizontal ground loops worth considering. An old oil or LPG tank can be removed once the new system is running, which frees up space and ends fuel deliveries.
Most air source heat pumps in England go in under permitted development rather than a full planning application. they are still conditional — there are limits on the size and siting of the unit, and an MCS 020 noise assessment is normally part of demonstrating compliance. Conservation areas, listed buildings and flats are treated differently, and the council's planning team is the authority on your specific address. Assume nothing; check first.
Oldham Council's planning team can confirm the rules for your specific address, including in Saddleworth.
Grants available in Oldham
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) covers England and Wales and is administered by Ofgem, so Oldham homeowners are eligible on exactly the same terms as anywhere else in England. The amounts are fixed:
- £7,500 towards an air source, ground source or water source heat pump.
- £5,000 towards a biomass boiler — off gas grid, rural, emissions certificate required.
- £2,500 towards an air-to-air heat pump. Residential only.
For an air source, ground source or water source heat pump the grant is £7,500, on the same terms in Oldham town and across Saddleworth.
Two details worth knowing. First, you no longer need an EPC — that requirement was removed on 28 April 2026, which means outstanding loft or cavity wall recommendations can no longer block an application. Second, the installation has to be commissioned within 120 days of the Ofgem application, so the grant is not something to sit on. The MCS-certified installer applies for you and takes the grant off your bill; you never handle the money yourself.
Separately, domestic heat pumps, solar and battery storage are currently at 0% VAT, which is due to end on 31 March 2027. Our full write-up is in the Boiler Upgrade Scheme explained.
Where ByEco stands right now. Boiler Upgrade Scheme applications can only be lodged by an MCS-certified installer. ByEco has MCS & TrustMark certification in progress and cannot submit a BUS application on your behalf yet. If you are planning work to a fixed date, tell us the date and we will say honestly whether we can meet it or whether you should go elsewhere.
Solar in Oldham
Hillside homes can have excellent unshaded roofs, while terraced streets in the valleys can be shaded by the rows around them. Orientation and shading are worth checking on site. East and west-facing roofs typically generate 15–20% less than south-facing ones but spread output across the day. See are solar panels worth it, or try our solar size calculator.
Heat pump detail is on our heat pumps page, and the other areas we cover are listed on our service areas.
Get a realistic figure for your house
Send us your postcode, roughly when the house was built and how it is heated now. We will come back with a straight answer about what would suit it — including if the answer is that the fabric work should come first.
Or email [email protected]. Our office is at 12–14 Midland Street, Manchester M12 6LB.