| Measure | Wigan | Bolton | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households | 143,102 | 118,789 | 24,783,199 |
| Mains gas only | 83.9% | 81.0% | 73.8% |
| Electric only | 5.2% | 6.8% | 8.5% |
| No gas meter (2024) | 3.82% | 6.03% | - |
| Semi-detached | 45.6% | 35.9% | 31.5% |
| Terraced | 26.1% | 33.2% | 23.2% |
| All flats | 9.1% | 13.3% | 21.7% |
| Owner-occupied | 66.4% | 61.5% | 61.6% |
| Heat pumps paid (BUS) | 194 | 177 | 96,185 |
| Per 1,000 households | 1.4 | 1.5 | 3.9 |
| Listed-building records | 362 | 360 | - |
Gas boroughs
Wigan is the most gas-reliant borough in Greater Manchester: 83.9% of households used mains gas alone in 2021, and only 3.82% of properties lacked a gas meter in 2024. Bolton's figures are similar, 81.0% and 6.03%. In both, the starting point for a heat pump is a gas boiler, and the comparison that matters is running cost against gas.
Wigan's semis
45.6% of Wigan households lived in a semi-detached house in 2021, the highest share of the ten, and only 9.1% in a flat, the lowest. A semi can have one air source unit under Class G, usually beside the side passage or against the rear wall. The neighbour's nearest window, often across the garden of the attached house, is where the MCS 020 a) sound calculation is worked out.
Bolton's terraces
Bolton has more terraces than Wigan, 33.2% of households, alongside 35.9% in semis. On a terrace the back yard or rear wall is the usual spot, since a road-facing wall above the ground floor is ruled out. The terraced houses page goes through yards, cylinders and the sound calculation.
Grants paid
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme has paid for 194 heat pumps in Wigan and 177 in Bolton, about 1.4 and 1.5 per 1,000 households, both in the lower half of the ten and well below the England and Wales rate of about 3.9.
The Warm Homes: Local Grant here
The Greater Manchester Combined Authority delivers the area-based scheme in both boroughs. Officers contact residents in selected areas; owner-occupied homes rated D to G and privately rented homes rated D or E can qualify, and heat pumps are on its list.
Listed buildings
Wigan has 362 listed-building records and Bolton 360. A listed house always needs planning permission for a heat pump.