Is a block with one shared boiler really a heat network?

It may be. Ofgem's guidance treats a communal heat network as one supplying heating, cooling or hot water to a single building that is divided into separate premises, which describes many blocks of flats with central heating or hot water.

Who has to register, the freeholder or the management company?

Ofgem says operators and suppliers must register. The operator is the body that controls the heat network and is responsible for it; the supplier is the body that has the arrangements with the customers. One organisation can be both. In a block run by its own company, that may be the company, but it depends on who controls the plant and who bills residents.

Are any buildings exempt?

Ofgem lists some out-of-scope cases, including a conversion of an existing building into several homes served by one energy source of no more than 45kWth, a single house in multiple occupation, and buildings not divided into separate premises.

Does this apply in Scotland and Wales?

Yes. Ofgem regulates heat networks in England, Scotland and Wales. Northern Ireland is not covered.

Communal heating: only about 1 in 20 heat networks has registered with Ofgem ahead of the 26 January deadline

Ofgem has regulated heat networks in Great Britain since 27 January 2026, and that includes a single block of flats with a shared boiler. Operators and suppliers of existing networks must register by 26 January 2027, and in a self-managed block that may be the block's own company.

What happened

On 27 January 2026 Ofgem became the regulator for heat networks in England, Scotland and Wales, with new consumer protection rules. Ofgem says operators and suppliers of heat networks that fall within the rules must register, and the deadline to register an existing network is 26 January 2027.

Update, 2 November 2026: very few networks have registered so far. Ofgem’s first monthly update on its heat network register showed 782 networks registered, about 5.5% of the more than 14,000 that Ofgem estimates exist, as Tim McManan-Smith reported for The Energyst on 30 October. Ofgem’s Director of Heat Networks, Helena Charlton, said Ofgem would do targeted outreach over the coming weeks and months and could use its full range of compliance and enforcement tools against operators who are stalling: “Where we do see signs of foot dragging, that’s not going to be acceptable.” An operator that has not registered by 26 January 2027 will be in breach of the regulations.

The deadline is less than three months away, and the rules reach further than many directors expect.

What it means for your building

Ofgem’s guidance covers “communal” heat networks: those supplying heating, cooling or hot water to a single building divided into separate premises. A block of flats where one boiler or plant room heats the flats or provides their hot water may fall within that. Blocks where every flat has its own boiler do not.

Ofgem asks each party to assess its own activities against the definitions:

the operator is the body with control over the network and responsibility for it;
the supplier is the body with the contracts or customer arrangements;
one organisation can be both.

In a block owned or managed by its leaseholders, the company that owns the plant and recovers heating costs through the service charge may be both operator and supplier. If an energy services company runs the plant and bills residents directly, it may be that company instead. Ofgem invites questions about specific cases to heatnetworksregulation@ofgem.gov.uk.

Ofgem lists some networks as out of scope, including a conversion of an existing building into several homes with one energy source of no more than 45kWth.

Registration is only the start. Ofgem expects operators and suppliers to offer fair prices, transparent information and reliable service, and it encourages heat network suppliers to join the Energy Ombudsman’s heat network scheme so residents’ complaints can be handled. Compliance work has a cost, which a board may need to plan for in the service charge budget; whether it can be recovered depends on your leases.

What to do now

Find out whether your building has communal heating or hot water, and who owns and runs the plant.
Check the exemptions in Ofgem’s guidance, especially if your building is a conversion with a small shared boiler.
If the company may be the operator or supplier, read Ofgem’s guidance, name a regulatory contact on the board, and register before 26 January 2027.
If a contractor or energy company runs the system, ask them in writing who they think the operator and supplier are.
Minute the board’s assessment, even if you decide you are out of scope.

This is general information, not legal advice. Whether your building is in scope depends on its system and your arrangements.

How Freeholdpilot helps

Freeholdpilot puts the registration deadline on the board’s calendar of legal deadlines, keeps boiler and plant records in the document store, and records the board’s decision and reasons, so the company can show what it assessed and when.

This is general information about the law in England and Wales unless it says otherwise, not legal advice for your building. For advice, speak to a solicitor or ask us to introduce one of our partner firms.