Solar panels, heat pumps and insulation in St George's conservation area
In the St George's conservation area (Leicester), external wall insulation needs planning permission, and so does an air source heat pump on a wall or roof facing the road; one at the back or side, internal and loft insulation and solar panels on a roof slope normally do not. The area has 16 listed buildings; on a listed building solar panels and heat pumps are not permitted development at all and need planning permission and listed building consent. 1,325 homes inside the boundary have an energy certificate: 11.9% are solid-wall homes with no wall insulation, 8.5% heat with a gas boiler and 23.2% are rated D–G; 0 have a heat pump. EPC register November 2026; rules as at 21 October 2026.
Data: EPC register November 2026 (latest certificate per home), conservation area boundaries 3 November 2026, permitted development rules as at 21 October 2026 · calculated 5 November 2026 · Methodology and sources
1,325homes with an energy certificate
11.9%solid walls, no insulation
8.5%heated by a gas boiler
0heat pumps
Article 4: Leicester publishes its Article 4 areas on planning.data.gov.uk and none overlaps this area; a direction can still exist on paper, so check with the council.
What needs planning permission in St George's
Work (house, not listed)
In a conservation area
Rule
Air source heat pump on a wall or roof facing the road, or nearer the road than the house
Planning permission needed
Part 14 Class G, G.1(j)
Air source heat pump at the back or side (outdoor unit up to 1.5 m³, MCS Planning Standards, one per house — two on a detached house)
No permission needed (permitted development)
Part 14 Class G
Solar panels on a pitched roof (up to 0.2 m proud, not above the ridge)
No permission needed (permitted development)
Part 14 Class A, A.2(c)
Solar panels on a wall, balcony or roof enclosure facing the road
Planning permission needed
Part 14 Class A, A.2(e)
Solar panels on a flat roof (up to 0.6 m above the roof)
Replacement windows and doors of similar appearance
No permission needed (permitted development)
Part 1 Class A, A.3(a)
Listed buildings: 16 in the area (grade I: 0, II*: 1). The table is for houses that are not listed: on a listed building, solar panels and air source heat pumps are not permitted development at all (they need planning permission), and any of these works needs listed building consent.
Flats: 100% of the certified homes here are flats or maisonettes. Homes in a block of flats have no householder rights for alterations; heat pumps and solar have their own, tighter rules for blocks of flats.
The homes in the area (latest certificate per home, n = 1,325)
Walls
Homes
Share
Solid wall, insulated
312
23.5%
Cavity wall, insulated (as built or unspecified)
297
22.4%
Other or not known
214
16.2%
Modern wall (U-value from the design)
162
12.2%
Solid wall (brick or stone), no insulation
158
11.9%
Solid wall, internal insulation
84
6.3%
Timber frame
35
2.6%
Cavity wall, unfilled
19
1.4%
Cavity wall, internal or external insulation
16
1.2%
Solid wall, external insulation
12
0.9%
Solid wall, partly insulated
7
0.5%
Cavity wall, partly insulated
6
0.5%
Cavity wall, filled
3
0.2%
Heating
Homes
Share
Electric (storage heaters, panels, boiler)
1,098
82.9%
Communal heating
115
8.7%
Gas boiler
112
8.5%
Loft / roof insulation
Homes
Share
No insulation
30
2.3%
Under 200 mm
12
0.9%
200 mm or more
16
1.2%
Insulated (depth not recorded)
190
14.3%
Flat or other home above
1,030
77.7%
Other
47
3.5%
Windows
Homes
Share
Double glazed
1,165
87.9%
Secondary glazing
139
10.5%
Single glazed
21
1.6%
BCD
Energy rating: A 1 (0.1%) · B 206 (15.5%) · C 811 (61.2%) · D 243 (18.3%) · E 57 (4.3%) · F 6 (0.5%) · G 1 (0.1%). Houses and bungalows: 0% of the homes; solar panels on 0.0% of the certificates. Most common build period on the certificates: 2003-2006. Designated: 25 May 1989.
Compared with Leicester and England
Share of homes
St George's
All 25 areas in Leicester
England
Solid walls, no insulation
11.9%
43.4%
48.7%
Gas boiler
8.5%
45.7%
66.4%
Rated D–G
23.2%
—
56.5%
Caveats
Certificates describe a home when it was assessed; 60% of these are from 2020 or later (latest 29 October 2026). “No insulation (assumed)” is the assessor's default for older walls.
The rules are England's national permitted development rules (General Permitted Development Order 2015, Schedule 2, as at 21 October 2026). They do not cover building regulations or a council's own conditions. This is not a planning decision: ask Leicester if in doubt.
Boundary: Leicester City Council via planning.data.gov.uk (entity 44012361, reference SG_v3, 11.0 ha); the council's appraisal or map. Homes are placed by the coordinates of their UPRN (OS Open UPRN); addresses are not shown.