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Methodology and sources

What the figures on this site measure, how they're built from public data, and what they can't tell you.

The policy we measure against

On 18 June 2026 the government published an interim response on minimum energy efficiency standards (MEES) for privately rented non-domestic buildings in England and Wales. It says that “from 2031, it is proposed that all private rented buildings over 1,000 square metres in England and Wales will need to reach a higher standard of energy efficiency of EPC B, where cost effective”, and that buildings below 1,000 m² stay at the current minimum of EPC E. The previously proposed 2027 EPC C step has been dropped.

This is a proposal. It needs secondary legislation, and further detail, including how the 1,000 m² threshold will be applied, is due in the full response. The 7-year payback test and existing exemptions remain, so a building rated below B won't necessarily be required to reach B.

Data

Building-level figures come from the Energy Performance of Buildings register, published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government through its “Get energy performance of buildings data” service: the full extract of non-domestic Energy Performance Certificates for England and Wales, which covers certificates registered since 2012. Current snapshot: 30 Sep 2026.

How the figures are built

  1. One certificate per building. Buildings are identified by their UPRN (Unique Property Reference Number). A certificate without one takes the UPRN of certificates at exactly the same address and postcode, or is matched on address and postcode. For each building we keep the most recently lodged certificate with a valid rating and floor area.
  2. Industrial and warehouse use. We count general industrial (B2) and storage or distribution (B8) uses as recorded on the certificate. Retail warehouses and offices with workshops (B1) aren't counted. Workshops and depots appear in the checker but not in the headline.
  3. Over 1,000 m². We use the floor area declared on the EPC and count buildings strictly over 1,000 m². We convert at 1 m² = 10.7639 sq ft.
  4. Rating groups. A+ to B meets the proposed standard. C to E is below it but meets today's E minimum. F and G are below today's minimum.
  5. Expiry. Non-domestic EPCs last 10 years. The extract has no expiry date, so we estimate it as the lodgement date plus 10 years. Lapsed certificates are included, because the latest rating is still the best public evidence.

Local-authority and regional pages

Each local authority and region page uses the same buildings as the headline, grouped by the local authority code on the certificate. Buildings with no local authority on their EPC count in the national figures only.

  • Within 10 points of B. Buildings rated C with an asset rating of 51 to 60. Band B ends at an asset rating of 50 and C runs from 51 to 75.
  • When certificates lapse. Estimated expiry (lodgement date plus 10 years) grouped as already lapsed at the snapshot, each year from 2026 to 2030, and 2031 or later.
  • Size bands. Over 1,000 to 5,000 m², over 5,000 to 10,000 m², and over 10,000 m², by the floor area on the EPC.
  • Heating fuel. The main heating fuel on the latest certificate. Fuels other than gas, grid electricity, oil, LPG and biomass are grouped as other.
  • Recommendations. The five recommendation codes found on the most certificates of buildings rated C to G, worded as most often lodged across England and Wales. Assessors' free-text recommendations are left out.
  • New EPCs in the last year. Industrial and warehouse buildings of any size whose latest certificate was lodged in the 12 months to the snapshot, by the reason on the certificate. A building certified twice counts once.
  • Small numbers. An area with fewer than three buildings over 1,000 m² would show its totals only, as with postcode districts, and a recommendation found on fewer than three buildings isn't listed.

Limitations

  • Not every building has an EPC. Certificates exist where a building has been built, sold or let since 2012, and owners can opt out of publication. The figures are a floor, not a total.
  • An EPC can't say whether a building is let. MEES applies to rented buildings; owner-occupied ones are included.
  • Floor area is as declared on the EPC, and a certificate can cover a whole building or one unit.
  • Ratings can be out of date. A building may have been improved since its last certificate.

Sources and licences

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (MHCLG Energy Performance of Buildings data; ONS local authority and region lookup).

Regions come from the Office for National Statistics' Local Authority District to Region (December 2024) lookup, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Welsh authorities are grouped as Wales.

Owners and occupiers can ask for a certificate to be removed from public disclosure through the government's opt-out service. We refresh our copy monthly, so opted-out certificates drop out here too.

Ordnance Survey and Royal Mail Copyright and Database Right Notice

This data contains address data (address 1, address 2, address 3, postcode – processed against Ordnance Survey’s Address Base Premium product, which incorporates Royal Mail’s PAF® database (Address Data).

MHCLG has published the address data with the consent of Ordnance Survey and Royal Mail Group Limited; Ordnance Survey and Royal Mail Group Limited reserve all their respective copyright, database rights, trademarks and other intellectual property rights.

Ordnance Survey and Royal Mail Group Limited permit the use of ‘address data’ solely for specific purposes related to the energy performance of buildings which are as follows:

  • The effective management of properties in the private or public sector with a view to promoting energy efficiency (through consideration of factors such as patterns of use, maintenance, repairs, improvements and upgrades of building structure or energy using systems).
  • Research to provide data, analysis and statistics intended to improve the understanding of energy efficiency of buildings or to facilitate innovation and improvement in use, design, materials and equipment to this end.
  • Research into the effectiveness or impact of energy efficiency improvements including those delivered through Government or other energy improvement programmes.
  • Promoting and marketing energy efficiency improvements that may be made through a government energy efficiency programme or initiative.
  • Promotion and better understanding of the current energy efficiency of buildings and potential improvement in the building sale or rental markets and/or by building occupiers or users.
  • To enable enforcement authorities to carry out enforcement duties as required by the Energy Performance of Buildings Regulations (England and Wales) 2012 (SI 2012/3118).
  • By local authorities in the exercise of their duties under section 91 of the Building Act 1984, or an approved inspector for the purposes of the inspector’s functions under Part 2 of the Building Act 1984.
  • For the prevention or detection of crime, the apprehension or prosecution of alleged offenders, any proceedings in a court or tribunal or complying with an order or a court or a tribunal.

In addition to the purposes set out above there are certain exceptions to copyright which permit you to use copyrighted material for specific and limited purposes. These include non-commercial research and private study, subject to compliance with certain conditions.

Where you publish or otherwise share address data with any other person for any of the purposes permitted under this copyright and database right notice, you must include a copy of this copyright and database right notice with the data.

Any use of address data which is not specified in this notice or covered by one of the copyright exceptions requires an appropriate licence from Ordnance Survey. You can contact Ordnance Survey at PricingLicensing@os.uk and/or Royal Mail Group Limited (address.management@royalmail.com).

Download counts and floor area by local authority (CSV), aggregates only, no addresses.