Builders Merchants Journal – BMJ Publishing to Builders Merchants and the UK merchanting industry for more than 95 years
Heating manufacturer Baxi’s 2026 Installer Skills and Attitudes Survey, published in partnership with JTL, found installers are increasingly prepared for heat pump installations, but lack opportunities.
According to the survey, six in ten installers are developing heat-pump competencies or planning to, with the share actively developing skills having doubled to 8% compared with 2025, but the manufacturer claims this capability is not translating into installations at the pace required.
Those definitely planning to rose by 10 percentage points, and only 8% ruled it out, down on 2025. However a quarter were ‘unsure’, up from 15%.
The survey highlighted a widening readiness versus opportunity gap.
Ian Trott, head of UK training solutions at Baxi, comments: “The industry has done a great job of investing in training, and installers increasingly have the skills they need to install heat pumps. The next challenge is giving them the hands-on experience and confidence to put those skills into practice.
“Installers are on the front line with customers. If government is serious about accelerating heat pump adoption, it should be asking how it can better harness that installer network and turn a trained workforce into a powerful driver of demand.”
