PHAM NEWS | MAY 2025 14 Your Views Star letter


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Encouraging apprenticeships from a young age


I was dismayed to read in the April PHAM News that the President of the SNIPEF Fiona Hodgson is against the idea of 14 year-olds leaving school to take apprenticeships. Not all 14 year-olds are motivated by academic subjects and so are bored at school. These young people need inspiration and motivation which could be achieved by having a practical and positive activity to take part in, such as learning a trade.


I was fortunate to leave school aged 15


and took up a plumbing apprenticeship with my father – having worked with him and helped him from the age of 12. Initially, I attended night school three nights a week and, subsequently, with the help of the CITB, changed to day release and block release schemes over the years. I completed a full apprenticeship and went on to achieve HNC level.


I thoroughly enjoyed my evening


classes. I remember being inspired by practical maths, i.e. technical drawing, calculating volumes, fl ow rates, hot water temperatures, heat losses… all relevant to my daily work.


Youngsters who are bored at school


struggle to achieve academically. Many of them have more practical skills and need guidance to use such assets in the real world. Would it not be far better for them to start younger in the workplace and fi nd motivation at the same as working rather than struggle on, uninspired to achieve?


Whilst trading I had excellent results


with young apprentices. We are all aware there is a shortage of well-trained and capable tradespeople. Apprenticeships should be encouraged from a young age.


BD Sayle Eng Tech MCIPHE RP Via email


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explains Maintaining standards


Why installers are key to the success of CHMM


Ian Rippin, CEO at the Microgeneration Certifi cation Scheme (MCS), explains the thinking behind the recently introduced Clean Heat Market Mechanism (CHMM), how it works and what it means for installers.


T


he CHMM, which came into eff ect 1st April, is a UK government scheme that aims to boost the uptake of heat pumps across the


country. Rather than focusing on increasing demand, which is the key aim of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS), the CHMM is focused on the supply side by setting new heat pump installation targets for manufacturers. This new drive towards heat


pump adoption will be monitored through heat pump installations. Manufacturers are set targets for the installation of heat pumps in existing properties based on the proportion of fossil fuel boilers they sell. They will then be subject to a fi ne for each heat pump, or credit, they fall short of within the designated 12-month period. Companies can supply heat pumps themselves or get credits from other manufacturers. In the fi rst year of the scheme,


manufacturers that sell more than 19,999 gas boilers to the UK market (or 999 oil boilers) must ensure that at least 6% of their total UK sales come from heat pumps. It is set to run until at least 2029 and the Environment Agency is the scheme administrator. MCS has been announced as an


approved certifi cation scheme for the CHMM, which means that only MCS certifi ed installations will provide credits. As a result, all heat pump installations under the CHMM must be registered on the MCS Installation Database (MID). This provides assurance that the installations are genuine and completed to industry- recognised standards, giving everyone confi dence in home-grown energy.


Rich rewards


I read somewhere the other day that school leavers who undertake trade apprenticeships are likely to be earning signifi cantly more than degree level students after fi ve years of completion. With university tuition fees now running close to £10,000 a year, I fi nd it hard to believe that the heating and plumbing industry still struggles to encourage youngsters to pursue a trade career.


I know life’s not all about money, but


becoming a professional plumber also off ers many other rewards. There are not many other lines of work that give you the freedom to run your own business after just a few year’s experience and provide you with practical skills and know-how that you can also apply in your own home. I, for one, have no regrets!


M. Chambers Via email


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The Editor, PHAM News 1b Station Square Flitwick, Bedfordshire, MK45 1DP


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Avoiding input errors An installer’s role is crucial, because they are responsible for directly providing information and data that feeds into the CHMM, which will in turn inform decisions that will grow our industry. Ultimately, by creating a certifi cate on the MID they are creating a certifi cation record, so it’s important that the data is accurate. To help installers with this, we’ve


outlined some of the data entry errors we sometimes see, which includes information such as cost, system type and details of hybrid systems. For example, when inputting the


overall cost of the installation, we occasionally see government grants such as the BUS deducted from the total. However, installers should enter the full cost without deducting the value of any grant or incentive, as this allows us to more accurately track the cost of renewable installations to consumers. Mistakes here can skew


Ian Rippin CEO at MCS


the data, potentially impacting the level of government funding further down the line.


Another error that can cause funding


issues is the incorrect reporting of heat pump system type, as air-to-air systems are currently excluded from some government funding, such as BUS. MCS also analyses data on the


installation of renewables across regions, to identify growth trends and variations in diff erent areas of the country. We can often see simple mistakes in the installation addresses, which can prevent an incentive from being issued. Recording hybrid heat pump systems


correctly is particularly crucial for the CHMM, as hybrid systems count for half a credit under the scheme. As a reminder, a hybrid heat pump system is a heat pump that operates with supplementary heat sources which are controlled by a single master controller. To avoid errors occurring, it is important to perform due diligence when fi lling out these details – there is guidance on the MCS website and within the MID itself to support with this.


Numbers on the rise The introduction of the CHMM is designed to stimulate supply and grow the heat pump market, building on the record-breaking uptake of renewable energy in 2024, which saw MCS certifi ed installations reach over 260,000. In particular, heat pumps saw a 43% increase in installations compared to 2023. We look forward to liaising with the


government, manufacturers and installers through this policy as the UK continues its push towards a greener future.


Find out more For more information on the CHMM and MCS’s role in the scheme, visit www. mcscertifi ed.com/clean-heat-market- mechanism or use the online enquiry link below. ◼ phamnews.co.uk/525/15


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